Precious
by ironandwine4life
Summary: Everyone precious to me is dead." So said Kakashi-sensei, who continues to train with the former Team 7. He now finds himself repeating this phrase, over and over, to remind himself why he can't become close with anyone again. But she's still there.
1. Chapter 1

"Naruto! You lazy bum. You know we have training with Kakashi-sensei today!"

Once again, Sakura poked, prodded, and practically pushed Naruto out of bed. "Eh, I'm getting up! Gah, I wish Kakashi-sensei hadn't given you the key to my apartment to wake me up. And why do we have to train anyway? We're all Jounin now."

"Are you really that ignorant? We only became Jounin 3 months ago. And I'm pretty sure that neither of us could beat Kakashi-sensei. We have to keep training. Besides…. You only want to stay home because you try to go out with Hinata all the time." Sakura took immense pleasure at seeing Naruto's face turn bright red.

"How do you know about…? HEY!" Naruto suddenly found his face meeting the floor as Sakura lifted his mattress and tossed him out. _How does she do that??_

"Now let's hurry up! Although, knowing Kakashi, he won't be at the training site for another 30 minutes." Naruto and Sakura chuckled for a second, reminiscing about their first day meeting Kakashi. So much had changed since then, but you could always count on Kakashi-sensei to be late.

Naruto hurried to eat a quick meal, brush his teeth, and (with Sakura outside) change his clothes. He almost rammed into the already-impatient Sakura as he was running out the door. She gave him an annoyed look and said, "Took you long enough! Now let's go!"

In order to get to their new training spot (Kakashi liked to move them around in order to test their ability to adapt), Naruto and Sakura had to walk to the other side of Konoha. Sakura made sure to avoid Naruto's favorite ramen shop, of course. _That boy and his ramen…_ Walking through Konoha always brought back so many memories… _So much has happened here… and I've changed so much._ She had made so many friends, learned so much, developed her medical skills and chakra… and discovered who was really important in her life. She glanced slyly at Naruto. _He is a goofball, but he's an honest and loyal friend._ Hinata, Ino, Ten-Ten, Lee, Tsunade… and of course, Kakashi-sensei. _Sensei…_As much as she didn't understand it… Kakashi-sensei had been rather cold to her lately. _Must be some kind of training technique._

"Sakura-chan, where are you going??" Naruto looked back at her, quizzically. Sakura looked around, and blushed as she realized that she had become distracted while walking.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Hey! Since when do you get to be the one that's not wandering around??" They both looked at each other, astounded by the moment.

"I think I'm going to savor this for a little while longer…. Ow!" He winced as Sakura gave him one of her famously strong punches.

"Quit with the nonsense, and let's go already!"

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Kakashi walked out into the field where he was going to train with Naruto and Sakura. _Strange… I'm the first one here? Maybe it's an ambush…_Ever on his guard, Kakashi ducked back behind the trees and began to scan the area. _No signs that anyone has been this way… hm… I must say, they've done a decent job. If they're actually here. Probably not, though. Naruto isn't one for stealth…_

Needless to say, he was not too far from the truth. Seconds later, he could hear the overly-loud Naruto crashing through the trees, seemingly having an argument with Sakura. "Don't you dare tell Kakashi-sensei about Hinata, Sakura, or I'll… I'll… do something terrible!"

Kakashi then heard Sakura's peal of laughter. "Oh, so you DON'T want everyone to know about the precious relationship between Hyuuga Hinata and Uzumaki Naruto?" Glancing out of his right eye, Kakashi saw Sakura running around, still giggling, while a red faced Naruto chased her around the clearing. Just as Naruto passed the tree Kakashi was behind, Kakashi quickly stuck out his right foot.

"Aaaaaaaagh!" Naruto, once again, ended up having his face meet the ground. Luckily for him, though, the grass was soft and the dirt wasn't too hard.

"Hahaha! Naruto, you've become as slow as an ox! And oh so clumsy. Yet you insisted that we didn't need to train anymore. I think I've been proven right, once again!" She wagged her finger at him, letting out another little laugh.

Kakashi decided that now was the best time to make his appearance. "Sorry, am I interrupting something? Oh dear," he said, looking at Naruto lying at Sakura's feet. "Perhaps Hinata-san should know about this." Naruto's eyebrows rose as his face turned an even deeper shade of red.

"You TOLD HIM?!? Sakura-chan, how could you?" Naruto turned his face up to the both of them, only to see Kakashi-sensei laughing at him.

"It would take a deaf man not to hear you crashing through the trees, professing your attachment to that girl." Sakura looked at him and started chuckling.

"So, Kakashi-sensei, does that mean that you were here before us? I must say, I am impressed." Sakura was relieved to see that he laughed with her. _Maybe I was just imagining the cold-shoulder._

"Well, if you two are ready… let's begin! Today's task is focused on fighting one-on-one. Although having a team is more common, there will be times when you find yourself facing a formidable opponent with no one at your side. You must be prepared for anything. Now, Sakura, you will be training with me. As for you, Naruto… you have the pleasure of training with Tsunade. I thought we'd shake things up a little bit."

Naruto's face instantly turned to one of dislike. "You mean I have to fight against the old hag?? Come on, Kaka- Yowtch!"

Tsunade appeared from the ground and punched Naruto, knocking him to the ground. "What are you saying, you annoying little wretch? I'll teach you to talk about me like that! Let me see if you're worthy to ever become Hokage!" With that, she and Naruto flew through the trees in an intense fight.

"Well, Kakashi-sensei, it looks like it's just you and me."

"Sakura-san, before we start… I must ask one thing of you."

Sakura faltered. This wasn't the normal banter she was used to! "Um… yes?"

"Don't call me sensei. Kakashi is just fine. After all, you're a Jounin now."

_Is he trying to mess with my head? Well, two can play at that game._ "Alright, Kakashi-sens- I mean, Kakashi. But you have to do one thing for me. Call me Sakura."


	2. Chapter 2

And so, the fight began. Kakashi and Sakura began an intense, intricate dance of blows, jutsus, and other attacks.

_Sakura has improved… and, as usual, she has excellent control of her chakra._ For an instant, Kakashi regretted spending most of their original time together focused on Sasuke. _I was foolish to ignore Naruto and Sakura's potential…_ Still, he couldn't help but feel somewhat better at seeing how they had grown without his guidance.

"Kakashi, if you keep letting yourself get distracted… this'll be all… too… _easy_!" Sakura's punches were getting closer and closer to hitting Kakashi, who had forgotten temporarily that he was in the middle of an extreme fight.

"Sakura, don't get cocky. You never know when your opponent will attack you with a surprise move." With that, he leapt back 10 feet, his hands rapidly moving. "_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu__!_" Sakura suddenly found herself surrounded by different clones of Kakashi. She glanced around for a moment, assessing how many clones there were.

"Nice try, Kakashi, but this isn't much of a surpri-"

"_Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu!_"

With a sudden rumble, Sakura was pulled into the ground with only her head poking out. "Inner Decapitation Technique…. Nice trap, but little tricks like this can't stop me anymore, Kakashi."

With that, Kakashi found himself looking at a tree stump. He let his clones disappear, since it would cost him in chakra if they stayed. He examined the ground closely, whispering to himself. "Replacement Technique, eh? Nice, but rather typical. Well, she's going to have to try harder if she wants to catch-"

Kakashi felt the cold tip of a kunai on his neck. "I'm sorry; did you want me to try harder??"

_Damn. How could I not sense that? She's gotten faster…_ "Good job, Sakura… but you have forgotten something."

"Oh? And what would that be?"

"You've still left yourself wide open for any traps."

With a quick flick of his wrist, a number of tiny wires shot out in Sakura's direction. She tried to duck, but was not quick enough and was soon trapped in an elaborate knot. _Looks like neither of us will give up this fight. Well, he still hasn't seen everything yet._

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Two hours later, Sakura and Kakashi stood around 6 feet apart, warily watching each other. _This is taking longer than I expected… Sakura has really improved her strength. And she's definitely better at controlling her chakra than I am. That Gouwan technique is a problem, too._

"What's… the matter… Kakashi? Not… as easy… as you'd thought it would be?" Sakura was just as out of breath (if not more so) as Kakashi, but she would never admit it. "You know, Kakashi… there's always one goal I had. One way for sure of knowing that I had become truly strong in my techniques."

_What? Is this some kind of distraction?_ Kakashi began scanning the nearby trees, and watch Sakura's every move. "And what would that be?"

"If I forced you to use your Sharingan to fight, I would know that I was truly strong. You only use it when you're out of options, right?"

A split second later, Sakura had a mini-heart attack as she was forcefully thrown to the ground. Kakashi held her down with his foot on her stomach, and looked at her intently in the eyes.

"Of all things, that is what you would wish for, Sakura? Do you not understand what it takes to use it? How I came across it? The amount of chakra it uses? Or that I only use it when I'm intent on completely and utterly defeating an opponent? You think I would use that on _you_?" He paused for a moment, noticing the frightened look in her eyes. He removed his foot, and then helped her up. "This fight is over. Come, we'll go see what progress Naruto has made." He walked away into the trees, not fully paying attention as to whether or not she was following him.

Sakura stood there, almost petrified by what had just transpired. She still heard his words ringing in her head._ "How I came across it? … You think I would use that on __**you**__?"_ Even though he didn't yell, his words still cut her to the core. She suddenly realized how little she knew about this man who had been a key figure and important teacher in her life. _Kakashi… who are you?_ Looking back on her words, she realized how foolish she had been. She sat on the ground with a soft thump, not daring to follow him.

"Sakura-chan, are you alright? Kakashi-sensei didn't hurt you too much, did he?"

Sakura looked over her right shoulder to see Naruto with Tsunade by his side, both of them looking a little tired but still concerned.

"What? Of course not. I gave Kakashi a run for his money. He just went off to look for you two. How did your fight go?"

"Eh? Oh, our fight ended a couple of minutes ago. Looks like this old hag can't handle the soon-to-be-Hokage!" Naruto narrowly missed a punch from Tsunade.

"You think that you could beat me, runt? I just didn't want you to be so tired that you couldn't go see Hinata-san later on." Tsunade and Sakura both laughed as Naruto sunk to the ground with a flabbergasted, confused look on his face.

"Does EVERYONE know?!"

Dragging Naruto to his feet, Sakura looked at Tsunade for a moment. "Tsunade-sama… can I talk to you later?"

"That depends… what do you wish to discuss? There's a lot that we both have to do today."

Making sure that Naruto was still distracted with the thought of everyone knowing about his "secret", Sakura leaned in to tell Tsunade. "I was hoping you could tell me more about Kakashi." _Maybe I can finally understand._

Tsunade looked at her for a long time. She then turned to Naruto. "Naruto-san, go find Kakashi." He gave her a look, and leapt through the trees, muttering under his breath.

"Alright, Sakura-san. Why do you want to know about Kakashi? What just happened?"

"Well… while we were fighting, I noticed how little I knew about him." _I can't tell her what happened; not yet, anyway._

"I'm not in a place to tell you about him. I doubt anyone is, really. My advice… is that you should ask him yourself. But be careful, Sakura-san. You might not like all that you hear."

Sakura looked over at Naruto and Kakashi, who were coming across the clearing over to them. Kakashi, as usual, had an indiscernible expression. "What do you mean, Tsunade-sama?"

"Instinct tells me that you said something to Kakashi in error. And you want to know about him in order to correct your mistake. Just… don't get in too deep. Kakashi is a man full of many secrets."

Naruto and Kakashi had reached them by then, so they cut their conversation off. Kakashi looked at Naruto and Sakura for a moment.

"You've both done well. That being said, I think we're done for the day. I'll see you both the day after tomorrow." Just as he was about to walk away, Sakura stopped him.

"Kakashi… can you do me a small favor first?" Once again, a distant, unreadable look came in his eye.

"What would that be?"

_Tonight is as good as any chance to find out who he is._

"Let me take you out to eat. As an apology."

Naruto and Tsunade took that as a cue to clear out. After a couple of minutes of silence, Kakashi looked at her.

"Very well."


	3. Chapter 3

They agreed to meet a couple of hours later, since they were both sweaty and slightly tired after fighting for such a long time. Sakura, who practically lived at the hospital, decided to get ready there. Once she tied her red headband in her hair, she walked into the lobby to see Kakashi waiting there.

He looked up at her and said, "I figured that you would be here. Well, where are we going?"

Sakura thought for a moment. _He wouldn't tell me anything if we were in a common place… but I don't want to go somewhere private. That would just be weird._ She sighed and looked at Kakashi for a moment. "Are you actually hungry?"

He looked at her for a moment. "No. And I'm pretty sure that you aren't treating me to a meal as an apology. You want to know something. Right?"

Her face flushed in embarrassment, and she nodded her head.

"Fine. Let's go for a walk."

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They ended up sitting on a bench just outside of the village. After a moment of reflection, Sakura realized which bench this was. _The bench where Sasuke left me. Left Konoha._ She felt a slight jab of pain in her heart. _After all of these years… it still hurts like it happened yesterday._

She had to let that thought go, though, since Kakashi was studying her expression. "Kakashi, I do want to apologize for what I said earlier. You were right. I _don't_ understand. Naruto and I have been your students for such a long time… and we barely know anything about you! This brings me to why I really wanted to speak with you tonight. I'm not asking you to tell me every little painful part of your life, but could you give us something? You know almost everything about Naruto and me. If our team is to continue to go on missions, there should be a certain level of trust." _Hopefully that wasn't too bold…_

Kakashi sat motionless for a long time, his eye fixated on the ground. Sakura began to shift uncomfortably, wondering if he would ever speak.

"If you knew what you were asking of me, you wouldn't have said a word. Unfortunately, you're right. I should have told you and Naruto more. Prepared you better. But, Sakura…" His right eye was fixated on her face. "You won't like everything you hear."

She nodded her head slightly, recalling Tsunade's words. "You mean, you'll tell me? And Naruto, later?"

"Before I begin my tale, you should know this: everyone precious to me is dead." He paused for a minute, allowing his words to sink in. "My life… is complicated. Now. Are you ready? I'm not going to repeat myself."

She nodded her head, slightly afraid at what she was about to hear. _I'm finally going to get an answer. But do I really want to know?_ _Too late for that now, I suppose._

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"My father was a famous ninja, known as the Konoha no Shiroi Kiba, or White Fang of Konoha. On one of his missions, he chose to save a teammate rather than complete the mission, which made himself disgraceful in the eyes of everyone around him. He later committed suicide. As a young boy, I made a personal oath to never be like him, and to always follow the book. After I became a ninja, the team that I was on, as you may or may not know, was taught by the Fourth Hokage. The two other members of my team were Uchiha Obito and Rin. Obito was a little bit like Naruto is. I was always caught up in following the rules, and thought myself better then my teammates. I then became a Jounin at age 13. The mission after that…"

Sakura listened in silent horror as Kakashi told her about everyone he had lost, everything that had mattered. _All of this pain. How can he still stand? _She suddenly was filled with an intense feeling of self-loathing. _After all of the things that __**I've**__ felt terrible about… _She realized that he had stopped talking.

"Sakura. I didn't tell you these things so that you could feel sorry for me. So don't. I told you so that you would know why I do what I do. And at what costs. And that our team could have 'trust', as you said earlier. Do me a small favor, though. Don't tell Naruto anything yet. He doesn't need to know at this moment." Kakashi stood up. "If that's all you wanted to know, Sakura, then I will see you tomorrow." A second later, he was gone.

Sakura sank into the bench, realizing that she had been listening to him well into the night. "Sensei…" She walked back to the hospital, and flopped down on a couch in the lounge, trying to digest everything that she had heard. This was _not_ what she had imagined to find out.

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She woke up to the sound of Tsunade's voice. "Sakura-san, what are you doing? I know I give you a lot of work to do, but you don't have to sleep in the hospital. Now, get up. A couple of men have come back from a mission, and one of them is pretty roughed up. I believe you have a job to do."

Sakura rubbed her eyes and sat up. _Was last night just a dream? Everything seems the same around here…_ She stood up, and then hurried upstairs to get her uniform on. _Just another day at the hospital._

"Oh, and… Sakura-san?"

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?"

"I hope you found out whatever you needed to know. And remember… don't try to get too involved with learning about Kakashi. You might not be the same." With that, she turned and left.

_Don't worry, Tsunade-sama… I've learned enough to last me a lifetime._ She spent the rest of the day treating injured ninja, while trying to process what Kakashi told her. At the end of the day she couldn't help but remember Tsunade's words. _The thing is… I think I've already changed._


	4. Chapter 4

Sakura couldn't sleep at all the next night. She was analyzing every conversation, every movement that Kakashi made in her time of knowing him. Reflecting on how carefree he tried to appear to everyone around them, she became increasingly irritated. _It's not right! For him to keep everything inside, for everyone to keep on living like everything is the same._ When her alarm clock finally went off, she tumbled out of bed, threw on some clothes, and headed out of her apartment door. What she did not expect, though, was Kakashi to be standing outside. _Crap… I probably look like I haven't slept._

"Sakura, be honest. How much sleep did you get last night?"

After a long pause, she shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not sure. Maybe a couple of hours… maybe less."

"Sakura, I never would have told you anything if I had known this is how you would react. Now go back inside. I'll tell Tsunade and Naruto that you aren't feeling well."

_I feel like a little kid that's being scolded!_ "Kakashi, that's not necessary." She began to walk past him, continuing down her steps. "I'm completely fine, and there's no reason why I can't-!!!" She began to fall down the stairs, everything moving in slow motion. Kakashi swiftly leapt in front of her, catching her in his arms.

Looking at her with his right eye, she could tell that he was _not_ going to believe anything she said. "It's a sad day when a Jounin in perfectly good health trips down a small set of stairs. Go back into your room. Rest." He made sure she made it in the door, and then added, "Tomorrow, I expect to see you at the training site looking as you normally would." Assuming his standard, carefree look, he strolled away from her apartment as if he was merely wandering around.

Sakura closed her door and lay on her bed, not completely ready to succumb to her exhaustion. _He's not fair. Not fair at all…_

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Kakashi headed for the hospital first, since he was sure Naruto was still asleep. "Tsunade-sama. If I might have a moment…" She waved off a number of medical ninja who were pestering her with questions and headed over to him.

"What do you need, Kakashi-san?"

"This concerns your apprentice."

Tsunade pulled Kakashi to a more quiet part of the lobby, and then made him sit. "Kakashi. I know that Sakura-san wanted to ask you something… somewhat personal, I assume. Yesterday, I found her lying on the couch in the lounge, exhausted. She was slightly scatterbrained for the whole day. What did you do?" Her tone was critical; she liked Sakura, and was justifiably concerned.

Kakashi was somewhat surprised by the accusation in her tone that he himself had done something wrong. "I was just going to inform you that she's not coming in today. I told her to rest." _She definitely needs it…_

Tsunade looked slightly appeased by this. "Very well. However, when she does recover, I do expect her to come in and continue with her practice."

Kakashi nodded. "That's fine. Well, I must be going." Just as he was heading out the door, Tsunade stopped him.

"One more thing. I don't know how much you told her, and I'm sure I don't want to know. But make sure that you look after her for the next couple of days. I'm sure she has a lot to think on. This is your responsibility." With that, she returned to the medical ninja who were scrambling around and shouting about some injured ninja who had just come in.

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Kakashi walked around in the village, unnoticed for the most part. _My responsibility? Hm._ He suddenly wished that he had a copy of Icha Icha Paradise with him. _It's a shame that Jiraiya is gone. No more Icha Icha books… Now what am I going to do when I need to relax?_ He walked past Ichiraku Ramen Bar and was stopped by a loud, somewhat annoying voice that he knew all too well.

"Kakashi-sensei! There you are. Hey, I think something's wrong. Sakura-chan didn't come over and yell at me this morning to wake up. Are we not training today?" Naruto, of course, had a mouthful of ramen and was ready to scoop in another.

"No, Naruto-kun. Training is cancelled. Sakura is… not as well as she might be. And I passed a black cat while walking here, so I…" He continued to ramble on about luck and whatnot.

_Kakashi-sensei is so ridiculous. He doesn't even realize that he's used this excuse before! Oh well. I've got things I can do._ "Eh, I understand, Kakashi-sensei."

"Good. Then you won't mind training with Gai's team today while I'm busy."

"Whaaaaaaaa? Aw… Kakashi-sensei! Why?!" _I was planning on eating more ramen, and then going over to see Hinata-chan…_

"You can't be slacking off, Naruto. Not when you're in good health, anyway." Leaving a flustered Naruto, Kakashi began to wander through the village again. _Now I have to find something to do…_Seeing Gai coming from the other side, Kakashi quickly ducked behind a building. _Dealing with him is __**not**__ what I had in mind._

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Sakura woke up and looked at her clock. _The sun's already setting?! Maybe I was a little bit tired…_ She went to the other side of her room and opened the window. A soft breeze blew in, and she sighed. _It's so peaceful… the exact opposite of how I feel._

"Good evening, Sakura."

"Aaaagh!" Sakura looked around to see Kakashi hanging upside down from the roof. "Kakashi, what are you doing up there?!"

"Well, I was waiting for you to wake up. I have nothing to do, and you're 'my responsibility' now, according to Tsunade-sama." He hung there for a moment, the blood slightly rushing to his head. "Not that I don't enjoy hanging like this, but… might I come in?"

A small flush of red crept up on her face as Sakura remembered her manners. Not that this was anything to expect, though. "Of course, of course. My apologies."

He dropped down through her window, and then realized that this was her bedroom. "I apologize. I didn't know that this was your bedroom." He looked around for a second before continuing. "Actually… I'd prefer that we speak elsewhere." He headed through the door, continuing until he was outside of the apartment. Not knowing what was going on, Sakura followed him until they were at the outskirts of the village. After stopping at the gate, Kakashi began to speak again.

"Sakura, Tsunade has given you a few days off in order to recuperate. However, I disagree. Only because I'm not sure how this should be handled. This is why I agreed to watch over you. We have to talk… and you must be honest. I told you a lot the other day. I'm beginning to regret that, since I believe I said too much. What exactly is bothering you?"

_He's worrying about __**me**__? What is the matter with him? With everyone? Don't they see that __**he**__ is the one who needs to be worried about?_ "Kakashi, nothing makes sense! It's not right. You keep everything hidden inside yourself, and you have no one to turn to and help you get through your pain! You've been hanging on to these memories of the past, not being able to let go. And you keep up this façade of being unconcerned and relaxed, and… and…" Her emotions kept tumbling out. She was ashamed with her outspokenness, but… "It's not right for you to suffer alone. Not now, when I know what's wrong. I know I can't tell anyone else about you. But will you at least let me try to help?"

When she was finished, Kakashi stood silently for a long time. Sakura's words seemed to be hanging in the air, and after a couple of minutes she got the courage to look into his eye. What she saw was almost as powerful as when she first discovered about his past. Opposite to the usual expressions, his eye reflected pain, memories… and… relief? Sakura didn't know what to think.

"Sakura…" Kakashi managed to say. "I know I can trust you now."

With that, he was gone.


	5. Chapter 5

Sakura woke up the next morning feeling slightly better. However, she still couldn't forget the conversation last night. _Although he didn't say much, I feel like it was important._ His mysterious words echoed in her mind… _That's just Kakashi-sensei, I suppose. At least I can say that he trusts me. To a degree_.

Clambering out of her bed, she stretched in the soft light of the rising sun coming through her window. _I __**do**__ have a day off… well; Tsunade-sama said that I could. For 'recuperation'._ She started putting on some clothes, contemplating on what she should do for the day. _Kakashi __**did**__ say that I was supposed to train… but I really don't feel like it. Maybe I could-_

"Hey, Forehead! Could you hurry up and unlock this door? Or have you become so lazy that you can't even let your best friend in?"

Smiling to herself, Sakura opened her apartment door to let the one and only Yamanaka Ino in. "Still so impatient, ugly Pig. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Word around the street is that you've taken a couple of days off, for once in your life. I figured we could go around town for a bit." Ino looked Sakura up and down, and then sighed. "God knows you need some new clothes…" Laughing, she tugged at Sakura's arm.

"Alright, alright! Give me a second." Locking the door, she began to walk down the stairs with her close friend. Joking and giggling, they began to head down the street into the main part of the village.

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Silently watching the exchange from the rooftops, Kakashi sighed and began to walk along the beams. _I wish I had something better to do._

Like Sakura, Kakashi was contemplating the conversation they had the other night. _Why on earth should she be so concerned about my life? She's 22- an age where most people are excited about their own lives- has several friends, and was clearly satisfied with __**her**__ life before she became so curious about __**mine**__._ Becoming slightly bored with listening to Ino's incessant chatter about boys (particularly about Shikamaru), Kakashi looked at Gai's typical training ground to see Naruto had gotten the hint and was training with them again. _Good._

"So, Sakura-chan… have you been looking at anyone lately?"

Sakura stopped and looked at Ino for a moment. Unbeknownst to either of the girls, Kakashi also paused. For some reason, he couldn't imagine Sakura having a relationship with anyone. Not after what happened with Sasuke.

"… No. Not really."

"Oh? It's a shame. Now that you've grown into that forehead, you're actually not that bad-looking. Hey! I have an idea!" Ino whispered excitedly into Sakura's ear.

Sakura looked at her with an expression of incredulity. "Are you kidding me? A blind date? Ino, I'm not particularly looking for Mr. Right to drop out of nowhere. I'm sure if there's a guy for me, we would have known each other for a while."

Ino let out a little peal of laughter. "Well, there are several people who have known you. I can think of a couple… maybe Lee-san is the one for- ouch!" Sakura gave Ino a small punch on the shoulder, and both girls continued to laugh and chat while strolling through the village.

Kakashi let the girls walk away, not caring to listen to the rest of the conversation._ I seriously need to find something to do._

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Sakura walked up her apartment stairs, chuckling to herself as she looked at her bags of new clothes. Checking her watch, she thought, _Ino-chan made me stay out until 4:30? So much for being productive..._ Still, she was glad that she had gone out with Ino. _I needed something to take my mind off of-_

"Hello Sakura. How has your day gone?"

Sakura whipped around to see Kakashi casually leaning against the railing, reading a book. _Well, so much for that idea._ "Oh… um, it's been pretty good, thanks." She looked at him for a second, sighed, and then asked, "Are you alright?"

Looking slightly surprised with the question, Kakashi looked at her. "Well, I suppose I am. Why do you ask?"

"You… hm. I know Tsunade-sama said that you had to look out for me, but that doesn't mean that you have to be bored." Seeing no protestation from him about her words, she continued. "We've never really done anything together outside of training, but we could go do something now, maybe. I don't really know. What _do_ you do in your spare time??"

Looking pensive for a moment, Kakashi said, "I visit Obito's grave, train, or read." Seeing her expression fall, he silently admonished himself for his ignorance. _Well, I just killed her good mood._ What surprised him, though, was her response.

"Well, get ready to move your schedule around. _We_ are going to try to do something fun. It doesn't have to be anything exciting. Maybe even just sitting by a lake, skipping rocks like kids." Sakura grabbed his hand and started pulling him along with her, all of her things left forgotten on her doorstep. _If this is how I can help him…_

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Kakashi wasn't used to this. Not one bit. Sakura thrust him into a new perspective of thought; she dragged him all over the village between small missions, training, and the like. It didn't matter that she had no idea what they would do. _At first…_ he thought to himself, _I just didn't know how to react. I'm not used to the idea of going around and having-_ Then it hit him. He was having _fun_. With someone else. Like a normal person would.

"Well, Kakashi, what should we do today?" Seeing his distant gaze, Sakura sighed. _Damn… what should I do? There's got to be something that I can do to help reduce his pain._ She walked over to him, a concerned look on her face. "Look, I'm sorry. I'm sure you don't like me dragging you around everywhere, but I just wanted to help. If you're tired of it, I understa-"

Kakashi walked over her with such a look of peace that Sakura stopped herself. His eye creased in a way that made her think he was smiling, and he softly said, "No. It's been… different, I'll admit. But not unpleasant."

Sakura's face instantly went from concern to relief. "Great! I have something fun planned for today. Now, we have to be kind of quick- I think it's about to start." Once again, she took him by the hand and off they went.


	6. Chapter 6

Sakura drew Kakashi to the highest place in Konoha- just above the figures of the four Hokages. "Sorry if I pulled you a little bit, but we had to hurry- the timing has to be just right." She sat down on a little spot of grass and motioned for him to sit next to her. Not knowing what was going on, he sat down and waited for an explanation.

"This one time, my parents and I got into this huge argument over my becoming a ninja. Like any kid, I wanted to run away. I climbed up here, not knowing where to go, when I noticed the sun setting. I know it's kind of lame, but at the time I thought it was the most beautiful thing ever. And sitting up here, I felt like I was on top of the world." Grabbing his hand excitedly, she began pointing at the horizon. "Look! Here it comes… three… two…" she smiled a little at glowing atmosphere which lingered for only a few minutes, displaying a cascade of brilliant colors.

Kakashi silently watched this manifestation of nature, speculating on what it meant. _This isn't the first time I've seen a sunset. And although it's a good view… it's not that much different from other times. So why is it that this time I feel different?_

"Well…" Sakura softly said. "What do you think?" As the sun was disappearing, it caressed both of their faces with the last few rays of sunshine.

Kakashi then realized why this sunset was so different. Sunsets to him before were just a sign that darkness was coming. Now he saw it in a new light. Sharing the sunset with someone else, a friend, made it unique; a moment where he could let his guard down, and actually enjoy the view.

"Kakashi? Are you alright?" Sakura slid over and looked up into his face, curious to see what was inside his mind.

In response, Kakashi moved his finger to his lips in a "shh". He pulled her over, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry about me. I'm just fine." _I have you here…my special friend._

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The next day, Tsunade came over to Sakura's apartment. Knocking harshly on the door, she called for Sakura. "Sakura, you have to wake up- we need you back at the hospital. There are some serious cases, and-"

Sakura rolled over in her bed. _Is someone talking to me?_ Recognizing Tsunade's voice, Sakura jumped out of bed, threw on some clothes, and rushed outside. "Tsunade-sama! My most sincere apologies. What's going on??" _Must be important- it's only 4:03 in the morning!_

Tsunade spent the time walking to the hospital in debriefing Sakura. "We sent some of our ANBU agents on a mission- which I can't tell you about- and they have severe injuries from some of the Sound ninja. They have several minor injuries which are being handled by other medical ninja. However, there are a couple of cases with severe injuries that only a few could treat. This is why I need you at this early hour. I have other duties to attend to, which are more pressing and relate to the mission." Upon arriving at the hospital, Tsunade left Sakura to go and speak with ANBU agents who were reporting about the mission.

Sakura walked into the intense care section, mentally bracing herself for what injuries there might be. But no one is ever really prepared. As she walked past each bed, she couldn't help but be stunned by the extent of the injuries that she saw. _There are at least 12 ANBU agents here… what on earth could have resulted in so much damage?_ Not only physically injured, at least half showed severe damage to their natural chakra, as well as their mindset. _These are ANBU agents, and __**this**__ is what happened?_ Sakura rolled up her sleeves and moved a medical ninja to the side. "It's my turn now."

"_Shujutsushitsu no Jutsu_!"

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Kakashi ambled into the new training site, looking around for Naruto and Sakura. To his surprise, only Naruto was there.

"Kakashi-sensei, why does Sakura always get days off? It's not fair!" He put his hands on his hips and began to pout.

"I see hanging around the Hyuuga girl has made you… more feminine." Kakashi secretly laughed at seeing Naruto's look of shock as he realized how he was standing. Then he realized what Naruto just said. "What do you mean? Sakura is supposed to be training today."

"Well, she's not here! Eh, maybe that old hag has her up at the hospital." Seeing that Kakashi was about to leave, Naruto quickly leapt in front of him. "Hey! No more training with Fuzzy Eyebrows. You're still supposed to train with me, after all! Anyway, Sakura-chan is probably busy doing important stuff. We shouldn't bug her."

Seeing that Naruto was right, Kakashi shrugged his shoulders. Sighing, he said, "Alright, Naruto. Just don't lose again."

With that, the two began to fight.

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Five hours later and extremely exhausted, Sakura slumped down into a chair outside of the intense care section. _12 ANBU agents… each with a different form of injury. Several displayed disembodied limbs; others had lost hearing, sight, etc. That was a lot of chakra I had to use…_ Her eyelids began to droop, and she was almost out when Tsunade walked up to her and called her name.

"Sakura, you've done an excellent job. But now is not the time for resting. Come with me." Pulling her to her feet, Tsunade dragged Sakura to her office and sat her down. "We've lost enough agents that I have become gravely concerned. What's worse is that there was a special team of medical ninja who were completely wiped out. However, this mission is one of crucial importance to Konoha. You are talented, strong, and have excellent control under harsh conditions. This is why I am asking you to fulfill your duty to Konoha as a ninja, and lead the medical unit for the mission."

Sakura, who was already tired, felt overwhelmed by what Tsunade was asking her to do. However, she sat up straight and nodded her head. "You can count on me, Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade nodded her head slightly in approval. "Good. Now, what I am about to tell you is in strict confidence- you are to tell no one. This is to stay between you, the other ANBU agents who are going, and me."

Sakura sat, silently taking notes in her head about what she was supposed to do, for two hours straight. Seeing her increased exhaustion, Tsunade sighed and said, "That's enough. You have until tomorrow to get rest and pack whatever you feel you might need. Now go."

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Sakura stumbled into her apartment, looking at the time. _It's only 12:13? It feels like a lifetime…_ Her immediate wish was to crawl into bed and sleep forever. _No… I have to get ready first._ Denying her body's demands, she began to get ready for one of the most difficult missions of her life.

_That should do it._ She looked at the clock and smiled. _4:21? Perfect. Plenty of time for me to rest…_

"Sakura-chan? Hello? Is anybody here?"

_Crap!_ "Naruto, I'm exhausted. What is it?!"

"Man… there's no need for you to act all crabby."

_You wouldn't say that if you knew how __**my**__ day had gone…_ "What do you want??"

"Oh. Um… I was just worried about you, that's all. Kakashi-sensei almost went to the hospital to see what was up. Weird, huh? Oh well. I'll tell him that you were… Wait. What _were_ you doing?"

_Of course __**you**__ would be the one to ask for secret information._ "There were a couple of severe cases, and Tsunade-sama was busy with more important things. Tell Kakashi that I'm sorry. Oh, and, Naruto…" She walked over and opened the door.

_Man… Sakura-chan looks pretty bad. She wasn't kidding!_ "Yeah?"

"I've been assigned on a mission… it'll take a week and a half or so. Tell Kakashi that I'm sorry, but duty calls."

"Um… okay then. Good luck on your mission, Sakura-chan!"

Sakura closed the door and sighed. _I sure need it._

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Kakashi stood outside his apartment, wondering why Sakura hadn't come yet. _She's usually dragging me to some random place by now._ He heard a rustle in the trees nearby, and turned, wondering if it was her.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei!"

_Nope._

"Don't look so down to see your favorite student! Well, not student anymore, but… Oh! Hey! I went over to see Sakura-chan. She's pretty beat, that's for sure. Didn't look at all like herself. She told me she was on a mission, and that it'd take around a week or so. You know what that means don't you?"

_Oh dear…_

"It's time for some good old fashioned male bonding! Yeah!!!!"


	7. Chapter 7

Sakura headed over to Tsunade's office the next morning, not sure what to do. "Tsunade-sama? I have everything ready. Where am I supposed to-" she let out a small gasp of surprise when a gloved hand was pressed over her mouth.

"Be quiet, Sakura-san."

"Who are you?"

"Just be patient for a moment. Now answer me this. What is your favorite animal?"

_What the hell is this for?_ "Um… a fox? Why is this-"

"Good. We have an extra for that. Now, if you'd kindly stop struggling, I have to take you to our place."

"You still haven't told me who you are!!!"

"Oh… I thought it was obvious. I'm with ANBU."

"Oh."

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Sakura flew through the trees, still trying to get adjusted to the new outfit. _There was no reason for that guy to keep me blindfolded… jerk. Although, I do like the fox-mask._ Smiling under said mask, she had to admit that being an ANBU agent, if only for a small while, would be kind of fun.

"Nighthawk! Take your group and execute plan Delta. And…Quickfoot!"

_Oh yeah. That's me._ "Yes?"

"We need you to stay at the rear. It's important that we keep our medical ninja far enough away from the- aagh!" His words were cut short as a cloaked group of ninjas began raining down from the sky, engaging in fierce combat with the ANBU operatives.

Sakura was about to join in the fray when one of the ninjas held her back. "Quickfoot, you have your own job to do. Leave this small group to us. We'll only need you to fight when there are more than 15 enemies."

A small growl formed as she was getting ready to make a snappy retort when she realized that he was right. Some of the men had already been severely injured, and needed some assistance. Still aggravated, she summoned up some of her chakra and began to heal.

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_I've finally escaped!_ Kakashi sighed as he leaned against a building. Quality time with Naruto was not as much fun as it might seem to others. _Not after yesterday. Watching the boy eat ramen all day long isn't exactly what I had planned on doing. _ _Still, now that I'm free today, I can try to relax and-_

"Hatake Kakashi! There you are! For some reason, I think that you've been avoiding me. Is it because you're afraid to lose yet again to the Green Beast of Konoha?" With a booming laugh Gai ran up to Kakashi and gave him a light punch on the shoulder.

Kakashi lightly punched Gai back, which caused the Green Beast to smile mischievously.

"Oh, so it's a challenge, huh? Well, I'll surely win!" Like a couple of 4-year-olds, Gai and Kakashi engaged in a punching contest to see who was the toughest. After a half hour or so, Gai stopped for a second. "Don't think this means I give up. On the contrary- I already see myself as the victor. However, there was something I wanted to talk to you about."

Somewhat surprised at the sudden change, Kakashi just nodded his head. "What is it?"

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_Damn. They just keep coming!_ The other members of ANBU were once again forced to fight off a number of ninja. _This is the fourth time in the past two days!_ Quickly dodging a careless throw of a kunai, Sakura called out to the team's overall leader. "Darkrider! We have to hurry- that last explosion was huge, leaving our position exposed. If we don't, then reinforcements will-"

"Quickfoot! I know what the stakes are! Focus on healing the last couple of men. There are only 3 ninja left. Then we'll continue."

Gritting her teeth, Sakura began to extract a severe poison from one of the ANBU agents. "There! That's the last of them." She looked up, relieved to see that no one had died yet.

Darkrider leapt over to her, air blowing out of his mask as he caught his breath. "I know you're not used to standing to the side. But don't forget that we need you to stay alive more than anyone else- we have to complete the mission this time."

Sakura nodded, and got ready to stand up. Noticing that she was swaying a little from releasing so much chakra, Darkrider held her by the shoulders to provide stability. "Thanks," she mumbled. Jumping to a tree farther ahead, she looked at him and said, "We should get going now- as I said earlier, that explosion was like a homing beacon."

Nodding, he motioned for the rest of the team and they all leapt through the trees, continuing on their journey.

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Gai continued speaking. "I was told by Tsunade-sama to inform you that Sakura wouldn't be training with you for around a week and a half or so. Some big mission going on."

Kakashi nodded. "Yes, I already knew that."

Gai raised his signature eyebrows in surprise. "You knew about it? Well, I can't say I'm truly shocked. I just don't know how you figured it out. Sending Sakura on an ANBU mission as the medical ninja, the mission being extremely dangerous and totally classified… hm."

_ANBU?_ Kakashi recalled his time in ANBU. Suddenly, he was filled with concern. And surprised at himself for it. _I was a member of ANBU- although it was intense. And Sakura is a well-trained medical ninja. She's going to be perfectly fine. Why am I so concerned?_

Seeing Kakashi's lack of response, Gai continued. "Speaking of the little cherry blossom, don't think people haven't seen her dragging you around town. I never thought I'd see you having fun like that. You always seem so detached from it all- especially your students. Hm…" he struck a musing pose, stroking his chin with his finger. "It would seem that she has become somewhat _precious_ to you, eh, Kaka- hey! Where did you go?!" Gai looked around, but to no avail. "We didn't finish our competition!"

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Kakashi was running through the town, pausing at the gate and trying to think straight. _Why? Why did he have to say those words?!_ He began running again, and then jumped into the trees to continue his journey. _Precious. Why did he have to say that?!_ Kakashi remembered his conversation with Sasuke, and then with Sakura as he said the same thing. _"Everyone precious to me is dead."_

He stopped, standing on a tree branch, slightly shaking. "Sakura…" She can't become precious. She can't become one of them. Kakashi had in fact lost everyone that had mattered. Was it for a reason? Was he cursed, so that everyone who was important died? _No. She can't die. I will not lose anyone else. Not again._

He brought out his scroll, bit his thumb, and said, _"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"_ Instantly, his team of dogs appeared.

"What's wrong, boss?" Some of them panted.

"We need to do some tracking. Do any of you recall the scent of Haruno Sakura?" Seeing that one or two did, he nodded and said, "Good. Let's go." The dogs began to howl as they soared through the trees, Kakashi in the midst of them with a look of pure determination in his eye.

_Never again._


	8. Chapter 8

_We're almost there!_ Sakura smiled under her mask as they reached the border of the Hidden Waterfall Village. Darkrider fell back in order to talk to Sakura. "You've been here before- correct?" She nodded her head, and let him continue. "Then, I'm sure you know as much as we do about the village's tree. And most importantly… about the legendary "hero water". We've received information from one of our members- Redbrow- that some of the members of Akatsuki are going to attempt to drain the tree, and then use the increased chakra power to bring an end to life as we know it."

Sakura frowned, contemplating how this could happen. "How did they find out the entrance to the village? Few people living outside know how to get in."

"That's what we'd all like to know, Quickfoot. However, we don't have time to figure it out. The ninja that we've been encountering… aren't really ninja. Akatsuki has been using _Shikon no Jutsu_ to constantly beset us with trouble. Which means…"

Sakura looked at the enormous waterfall coming into view. "Which means that the fighting is only about to begin."

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Naruto rolled over in his bed, yawning slightly as he looked at the clock. _Wha? It's already 11:17?!?!_ Jumping out of bed, he threw on clothes and ran out the door. Rushing through the town, he couldn't help but wonder what was going on. _Neither Kakashi-sensei nor Sakura-chan came to wake me._

Arriving at the training site, out of breath and sloppily dressed, Naruto looked around. "Kakashi-sensei?! Sakura-chan?! Where are you guys?!" Naruto looked up, around trees, under boulders, but to no avail.

"Naruto-san! I see your sensei isn't here. You know what that means…"

Naruto knelt on the ground, looking up in the sky with tears coming down his face. "No! Not again! Wait, don't! I'll go train with someone else. Anyone else! You can't drag me there! I'm the future Hokage, and I-"

Naruto continued his tirade as Gai and Lee dragged him over to their training area, for what was sure to be an… interesting day.

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Kakashi stopped for a moment, allowing the dogs to rest for a while. "Boss," one of them said, "We can still follow her scent alright for now, but we're starting to pick up dark scents. Like graveyards. Do you have _anything_ that we could use to make it easier to sniff her out?"

Thinking for a moment, Kakashi looked at his gloves. _That's it!_ He was grateful that he hadn't washed them yet. _Sakura' scent is sure to be on them. Considering how often she pulled me around…_ Showing the glove to the dogs, they began to howl again as they had a stronger scent to follow.

While continuing through the trees, Kakashi couldn't help but notice the trail that they were going on. _It looks like we're going to the Hidden Waterfall Village! What on earth is ANBU doing there?_ Then he thought about what the dog had just said. _The smell of graveyards…!!_ Calling on them to increase the pace, his eyebrow furrowed in anger, determination, and concern.

_I'm coming, Sakura._

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The team surrounded the trees that were closest to the waterfall. Sakura stood next to Darkrider, since every ninja would be needed to fight. _How many members of Akatsuki are going to be here?_ Sakura thought for a moment. _Well, at least we don't have to worry about Satori…_

Darkrider looked at Sakura and said, "Nervous? You're kind of tensing up."

Sakura looked over at him. "Are you saying that you aren't? If you're not, then you don't understand what we're up against." Realizing how that must have sounded, she immediately apologized. "Sorry. I am nervous."

"It's okay. I understand."

The sound of one of the ninja shouting in pain caused everyone's attention to shift to the right side of the waterfall. Through the trees walked Kisame, a sadistic grin on his face, and Pein. "Damn…" Darkrider muttered under his breath. "Pein himself? This is going to be more difficult than I thought…" Behind the two, a number of nameless ninja followed, poised to strike. "These must be the dead…"

His words were cut off when Pein began to talk. "Thanks for the information, Redbrow." He sneered at the other ANBU who were shocked by this revelation. Redbrow leapt over to the two members of Akatsuki, and removed his mask to reveal a crazed, elated face. Sakura shuddered slightly at the look in his eyes. "Now that we know where the Hidden Waterfall Village is, all we have to do is eliminate you weaklings. Now… who wants to be the first to fall?"

There was a moment of silence, and then all the ANBU agents and Akatsuki members/minions ran together and clashed in an intense duel to the death.

"Darkrider! Whatever you do, remember to watch out for his Rinnegan!" Sakura narrowly dodged an attack from Kisame, who she was fighting. Darkrider was dueling with Pein, and the other ANBU agents were handling the dead ninja. She took immense satisfaction as her chakra-powered punch knocked Kisame into the air. She then leapt up, continuing with the attack in a series of blows. Kisame tried to regain his strength in mid-fall, but Sakura noticed him pulling out his weapon and immediately shouted, _"Ranshinsho!"_

Kisame let out a small gasp as his left leg moved how he intended his right leg to move. Underneath the two, Pein looked up and saw the move. _That move… Jiraiya told me about it. But…only Tsunade was able to do it!_

Darkrider saw this as a perfect chance to attack. Dodging from a random kunai and then taking it in his hand, he rolled to the right and stabbed Pein in the side. _I got him! I got-!!_

Sakura looked down and let out a small moan as she saw Darkrider fall to his side, blood coming out from his chest. _Kisame is out for a while. I have to help Darkrider!!_ She left Kisame moving his arms wildly in a bizarre attempt to walk, and rushed to Darkrider's side. "Nighthawk! Littlefoot! I need you two to handle Pein while I try to heal Darkrider."

_"Shosen Jutsu!"_

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Hearing a large explosion, Kakashi turned his head to the north and saw smoke billowing from the area. _There!_ He paused, turning to the pack. "Good job. You can go now." With that, they all disappeared in small puffs of white smoke.

Clambering through the trees, Kakashi stopped at what most would consider a scene in a horror movie. ANBU agents were fighting ninja who were raised from the dead, as well as… "Pein! And Kisame. Damn…" His eyes quickly scanned the area for Sakura, looking for her chakra flow. When he was able to find it, what he saw made his heart stop. _She's covered in blood!_ An instant later, a crushing sense of relief fell on him as he realized it wasn't her blood. Not willing to stay on the side anymore, he maneuvered through the battle to Sakura.

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"Darkrider! Are you alright?" Sakura focused her chakra to help heal him once again. _How did this happen? It was only a second from when he stabbed Pein that he fell to the ground. These injuries…they're too intense!_ Struggling to keep the chakra flow steady, she almost fell over backwards from the effort when a hand held her up. She turned around, ready to attack if necessary, and almost fell over again from shock. "Kakashi?!"

Hearing the name, Pein turned from the ninja he was fighting, incapacitating them as if they were small pests. "Hatake Kakashi… this _is_ a surprise. What are you doing here? Don't tell me…" his eyes fell to Kakashi's hand supporting Sakura, and the somewhat-protective stance he had over her. "You're trying to protect that ninja? How very… interesting."

Lifting his headband, Kakashi opened his left eye to reveal his Sharingan. "I try to protect the safety of Konoha, and the other villages, from the terrors that you would unleash."

Pein sneered, unconvinced with his response. "Well then, Kakashi, let us begin. You, the fox-ninja, and me." Throwing off his robe, his body started to change as he switched to the next path.

Sakura looked at Kakashi, not believing what was happening. _How did he know about this mission? Why would he come here? Now I have to make sure nothing happens to the both of us!_ Standing at his side, she assumed an aggressive stance.

Looking over at her, Kakashi couldn't help but to smile somewhat at what he was thinking. "Is this what you had in mind for our outing, Sakura? If so, I must admit, this will be quite entertaining."

With that, the most difficult battle began.


	9. Chapter 9

Pein's body began to contort, spreading in a warped and disgusting manner. Kakashi swore under his breath. _He's using Enmei!_ "Sakura, hold back! This is the body that Pein used to destroy Jiraiya." To his frustration, Sakura wouldn't move. "What are you doing?"

"Kakashi! I am not helpless like I was before. And if Pein was able to kill Jiraiya…" She turned her head to the side, not able to think of what could happen to herself or Kakashi. "We have to work together." With that, she stored up chakra into her fist, punching the ground with enough force to crush a mountain.

Pein began to stumble as he fought to regain balance, and seemed unaffected by what Sakura had done. _This ninja has the strength of Tsunade. And performed some of her jutsus… which tells me that this is either Tsunade herself, or an apprentice._ _But… if she was the Fifth Hokage… why would she wear a mask?_ "Is that all you can do? If so, this battle will end more quickly than I expec-"

_"Taju Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_ Several clones of Kakashi appeared, giving him and Sakura an easier opportunity to strike against Pein. Kakashi was about to use the _Raikiri_, when he remembered the enormous waterfall behind them. _"Suiryudan no Jutsu!"_ As the dragon-shaped torrent of water surged toward Pein, Kakashi saw Sakura out of the corner of his eye. _What is she doing?_

Leaping into the air, Sakura seemed to ride the water as she prepared to attack. _"Tsutenkyaku!"_ Her leg came pummeling down, striking Pein with a sickening crunch. Jumping out of the way a second later, the water hit Pein with intense speed, knocking him off of his feet towards Kisame, who had just recovered from Sakura's jutsu.

Snarling, he began to form his own jutsu. _"Suikodan no Jutsu!"_ An instant later, his water jutsu was met by Kakashi's replica. Pein looked up at Kisame with a look of skepticism. "Did you forget about his Sharingan already? He almost killed you with it last time." Ignoring Pein's words, Kisame pulled out Samehade, gesturing to Kakashi. "Let's see if you remember this!"

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Naruto was running towards the hospital with increased speed. "Hey, Naruto-kun! We aren't finished training yet!" Lee and Gai were chasing after him, determined not to lose this race. _Must… keep… going!_

Tsunade was just leaving the hospital with Shizune when Naruto crashed into her. "What's going on here?!" She put her hands on her hips, trying to control her temper.

"Old hag! Thank goodness." Naruto sighed in relief. _Now Fuzzy Brows can't get me!_ "Kakashi-sensei isn't here! No one has seen him for at least two days. And I will _not_ go back to training with Fuzzy Brows!"

Tsunade's face switched from annoyance to concern. "Who was the last one to see him? We can't afford to have ninja running around without permission."

Gai and Lee caught up to them just then. "Oh, Tsunade-sama! Heh… um, well, I was the last one who saw Kakashi. You see, I was just telling him about Haruno Sakura's mission, and then he just took off! I still don't know why… we weren't finished with our latest competition!"

Swearing under her breath, Tsunade pushed Gai out of the way. "This is going to be a problem." She was just about to take off when Shizune stopped her.

"Tsunade-sama! You can't leave the village. You are the Hokage! We need you here."

_If she had said anything else…_ Sighing, Tsunade turned around. Thinking for a couple of minutes, she said, "We can't allow anyone else to find out about the mission. It looks like they're on their own."

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An hour later, Kakashi and Sakura were still fighting against Pein and Kisame. Kakashi was able to avoid most attacks, but he had been deeply cut in the leg by Kisame's sword. Sakura also had a gash across her cheek from one of Pein's attacks. _We don't have much time- our energy is being used up!_

Just as Sakura had that thought, a moment of relief came as the other ANBU agents began to join the fight. _They've gotten rid of the other ninja!_ Seeing that they were outnumbered, and also slightly wearied from the fight, Pein and Kisame hesitated. No one moved as tension increased, the only sound heard was the thunder of the waterfall nearby.

Kisame turned to Pein, muttering, "There are at least 10 of them- not including Kakashi and the fox-ninja, who are strong enough to have lasted this far. We should regroup at our base and-"

"And what? They're going to expect our return, and have more ninja to protect this village. It should be little trouble to get rid of these ANBU."

"But you've used 2 of your bodies already, and we can't afford to lose-"

"We will not be seen as weak!" Pein looked at Kisame with loathing.

Kisame instantly recognized Pein's real reason for not wanting to leave. "No one in their right mind would call you weak. On the contrary- seeing you leave will increase their fear, because it gives us time to grow stronger. They will quake at your very presence!"

Pein paused for a moment. Nodding slightly, he turned to Kakashi, Sakura, and the rest of the members of ANBU. "It doesn't matter where you go or how far you run, we will hunt you down, and the last thing you see will be our face. We will be back." In a swirl of smoke, they were gone.

The other members of ANBU sighed in relief. Darkrider walked up to the fallen body of the man who was known as Redbrow. His voice hoarse, he said, "You got what you deserved." The team began to head out, one by one, leaving the body of their former comrade. In a few seconds, only Sakura and Kakashi were left among the strewn corpses of the dead.

Sakura turned to Kakashi, taking off her mask, all pretenses of secrecy off. "Kakashi… How did you find out about the mission? Not that you weren't helpful, but… why would you come here? What's going on?" The concern on her face was distinct.

"Sakura… remember when I first told you about my past?" Not knowing where this was going, she nodded. "I told you that everyone precious to me was dead. But that's not true."

Wondering what he was talking about, Sakura was about to ask when she was stopped by the gentle stroke of his finger down her cheek.

"_You_ are precious."


	10. Chapter 10

That one simple touch sent a spark of emotion through them both. Neither, however, knew what was going on. _What was that?_ Kakashi quickly dropped his hand, looking to the ground. Covering up his Sharingan, he motioned for them to head out. "We should get going."

Nodding slightly, Sakura put her mask back on so Kakashi could not see the slight tinge of red on her face. She was about to jump off when she remembered his injury. "Hang on a second- I have to heal that. It's probably deeper than it looks." She bent over slightly to look at it, then straightened up and made Kakashi sit down. Rolling his pant leg up, she placed her hands over the wound and began to heal.

Kakashi was surprised by how quickly he was healed. And, strangely… he was surprised by Sakura's chakra signature. It was a light red, almost pink when first examined, but when looking more closely he noticed that there was a deeper, purer shade of red. _I wonder what that means…_

Sakura, used to using the patient's chakra to help with the healing process, was surprised by Kakashi's signature as well. There was no mistaking that color and feel of midnight blue. _It's like the ocean- deep, with so much hidden in its depths. I feel like I could drown in his signature._ Realizing that her hands were still on his leg, she quickly lifted them off, then brushed off her pants. "Well, that should do. Like you said… we should get going."

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When they finally reached the gates to the village, they saw an irritated Tsunade waiting for them. "Kakashi, what do you think you were doing? Did you forget your obligation to Konoha as a ninja? What if something happened while you were gone?" Crossing her arms, she waited for an answer.

Kakashi, instead of giving her a straight answer, began to explain why it was good that he did go and not why he went. "Tsunade-sama, if I had not shown up the outcome of the mission would have been completely different." Making sure that no one was around but the three of them, he whispered, "Kisame was there, and so was Pein himself. There were also several ninja who were raised from the dead. If I hadn't shown up, most of the ninja would have died." Looking at Sakura, he whispered, "Maybe all of them."

Sakura jumped in then to say, "He's right, Tsunade-sama. Darkrider was gravely wounded, and I was healing him when Kakashi showed up. The other ANBU agents were preoccupied with the dead ninja. If he hadn't shown up, then Pein and Kisame would have defeated us."

Tsunade examined them both. _Something's up with the two of them._ Putting that thought aside, she sighed and said, "I don't want any ninja to think that they can get away with running off like that. I thank you for helping to complete the mission; however, you are going to be suspended to staying in Konoha for two weeks. No missions."

He was about to protest when Sakura quickly brushed his arm as a warning sign. Sighing, he nodded. "Very well."

Tsunade noticed the touch and stored it in her memory for later examination.

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Neither Kakashi nor Sakura could sleep that night. Kakashi rolled over in his bed, analyzing the emotions that he had been feeling earlier. And what he thought of Sakura. _I'd have to be a fool not to notice how she's changed over the years._ Shaking his head, he knew that he was thinking dangerous thoughts. The age difference didn't really bother him, it was more of a- _Stop thinking about it._ He rolled over and tried to forget the feel of her cheek under his finger. Little did he know, Sakura was thinking about him as well.

_What did that mean?_ Sakura tossed and turned in her bed, knowing that sleep was a long way away. She was touched that he considered her an important person in her life. _But… I'm sure he only meant that as a friend._ She still got goose bumps when she remembered how softly his finger caressed her cheek. _Stop, Sakura!_ When she was still his student she, like many girls her age, had a small infatuation with their senseis. _But that was a long time ago. And he was your sensei! Lines are there for a reason._ Yesterday, everything was normal. _Everything is still normal, moron. You're just taking things out of proportion!_

The next day passed by as if it were any other. They both trained, and then went about doing their usual business. When the sun was setting, Kakashi stood outside his apartment. _She hasn't come yet…_ He wished that he could have been surprised by this. _I can bet that our daily outings are a thing of the past._ Sighing, he walked into the darkness of his apartment.

Sakura walked into her apartment at the same time, flopping down on the couch. _He didn't say much today. I wonder what he's thinking…_ She dozed off, thinking about what she should say to him when they would go out.

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Waking up, Sakura looked at a clock to see the time. _1:30 in the morning?_ Cursing, she jumped up. _I didn't go see him._ Knowing how ridiculous she was, and doubting that he was even expecting her, she rushed out the door.

Kakashi woke up to the sound of rapid knocking. _Who could that be?_ Thinking it might be an emergency, he quickly got up and opened the door. The last thing that he expected was to see Sakura standing there, slightly out of breath. "What's the matter?"

After waiting a few seconds to organize her thoughts, Sakura said, "We didn't get to go out today." Seeing the bewildered expression in his eye, she hastily added, "I know it's kind of late, and you were probably in the middle of sleeping, but I just- I mean, I didn't want you to think that I had forgotten." She was slightly shocked at his reaction.

Kakashi froze. _She… _excusing himself to get dressed, Kakashi slumped against his door, surprised at his emotions. _She didn't want me to think that she forgot._ Suddenly feeling better, he went to put on his usual outfit. Opening the door, he waited for a second. "Where are we going?"

Sakura's face became kind of sheepish. "Well… I'm not entirely sure what's available in the middle of the night. Probably not something you'd want to go to." Looking up at the sky, she thought for a couple of minutes. "Hey! We could just, you know, relax and talk. Can I come in?" She was glad it was dark outside: her face was a light shade of pink.

Slightly dazed, Kakashi nodded. "That's fine with me." Then he realized what she was asking. _My apartment…_ it wasn't exactly homey. "Well… my apartment isn't exactly cheerful. And, well…" _Considering what happened earlier…_

Sakura's face was unreadable. "That's perfectly fine. Whatever makes you comfortable." The two of them stood there, not sure of what to do next. _I honestly didn't think it would be a problem. Shows how ignorant I still am about him. _

"You know what? It's okay. Come on in." He stepped aside, allowing her to finally see what the place where Kakashi lived looked like.

_It's not that bad. Just not as colorful as other houses._ Her eyes scanned the living room, until they fell upon a cluster of pictures on the wall. _This must be what they looked like._ The people that were important to Kakashi were grouped together. She turned to him and smiled. "Mind if I take a little tour?"

Unsure of what to do, Kakashi just nodded. "I'll make something for us to drink. What would you like? Tea?"

"Sure. That sounds good."

As he was walking into the kitchen, Sakura began walking past the living room. She stopped in the guest bedroom, seeing a bookshelf with random books, a training set, and a small television. _Nothing crazy…_ Wondering if she was allowed, she silently tiptoed into his room. _A bed… dresser… clock… Wait. What's this?_ She went over to his nightstand and picked up the small object. _I can't believe it…_ It was a picture of their team from a long time ago. The same one that she kept by her bed. There she was, in the middle and just under Kakashi's head. _Things were so much easier then._

"Have you enjoyed your tour?" Sakura jumped slightly to see Kakashi standing right behind her. He was looking at her, an odd expression in his eye. "Well, the tea is ready. Unless you'd prefer to have it in here?"

"Nope! I'm good with the kitchen. I wouldn't want to make a mess." Moving carefully, she skirted around him, trying to forget how close he had been. Likewise, he was trying to forget about her.

_What is this?!_


	11. Chapter 11

Kakashi sat down in the easy chair, allowing Sakura to sit on the couch. She curled up into a ball, looking somewhat like a content kitten, as she sipped on the tea. Amazed that it was delicious, she asked, "What kind of tea is this?"

Smiling underneath his mask, he replied, "It is Ceylon tea, with summer cherries. I thought you might like it." _Such irony; the "cherry blossom" enjoys cherry-flavored tea._ "Are you surprised that it tastes good, or are you surprised that I know how to prepare tea?"

Chuckling, Sakura said, "Both, actually. You don't really strike me as the kind of guy who works well in the kitchen. I must say, it is a pleasant surprise." Taking another small sip, she sighed contentedly and said, "So… what should we talk about? Maybe we could just ask each other random questions. Is there anything that you'd like to know about me?"

Kakashi recalled Sakura's chakra signature, and wondered if as a medical ninja she would understand. "What does your chakra signature mean?" Seeing the puzzled look on her face, he hastily added, "When you were healing me earlier, I couldn't help but sense it."

Sakura began to explain, a hint of a smile on her face. "A person's chakra signature means several things. It depends on the particular energies which constitute that person's makeup, the overall health of the energy field, and the current life issues and transitions occurring at a particular time. This also implies that a person's chakra signature can change." Pausing for a moment, she asked, "What did my signature look like?"

Kakashi thought for a second. "Well, it was… light red, almost pink on the surface, and a deep, pure shade of red in the center." He tried to understand what that might mean, but drew a blank. "What do the colors signify?"

"Well… light red usually reflects sensitivity, friendship, and joy. The deeper red… most commonly reflects strong willpower, courage, leadership…" Her voice grew rather soft as she said, "longing." Shaking her head, she continued. "Red can also reflect anger, vigor, and stability." Her head tilted in a curious pose, and asked, "Would you like to know about your own signature?"

Kakashi looked slightly surprised. "How do you know what my signature looks like?"

Looking slightly embarrassed, Sakura said, "It's usually better to use some of the patient's own chakra when healing, so that the body won't reject the new chakra as easily. Naturally, I couldn't help but sense your signature."

"Oh. Well, you can tell me about it. What color is it?"

"Midnight blue…" Sakura remembered her description earlier and blushed slightly. _Why don't you tell him that you could drown in his signature? Yeah, that'd be great._ "Darker blues usually represent trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence, and truth. Usually a sign of… masculinity." Her face became a slightly darker shade of pink.

Kakashi found her embarrassment amusing. Then, reflecting on her explanation, he couldn't help but find the whole thing fascinating. _It makes sense…_ He found himself analyzing the person sitting across from him. _Sakura is full of strength, courage, sensitivity, and…_ he chuckled inwardly. _She certainly has an angry side._ Flashes of her angrily jabbing Naruto and her other friends went through his mind. Seeing that she was watching him, he quickly stopped his thoughts and said, "Well, I've asked you about yourself. What would you like to know about me?"

They continued talking, enjoying each other's company, and relaxing- not paying attention to the lateness of the hour.

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Unbeknownst to anyone, Tsunade was also awake in her office. She had finished working hours ago, but couldn't rest until she sorted a few things out. Her mind eventually fell on what had happened earlier between Kakashi and Sakura. _She jumped in to help him from getting into trouble. And then that brush of the arm…_ She tapped her pen on her chin, thinking. Then, she was struck with the answer as she remembered what Gai said. _"I was just telling him about Haruno Sakura's mission, and then he just took off!"_

_That's it!_ All the pieces were coming together. Tsunade chuckled slightly, realizing that neither of the two understood what was going on. _Kakashi, being somewhat of a pervert at times, is used to feeling lust, not love. Of course he wouldn't understand._ Frowning somewhat at his reading tendencies, she realized that Icha Icha would have to go if he was to have a relationship with her little apprentice. _And Sakura… well, after Sasuke, of course she would doubt herself in any area of affection._

Another thought hit her. _Am I the reason why this happened?_ No, she couldn't be. She only told Kakashi to watch over Sakura for a couple of days.

Rubbing her hands together mischievously, she said to no one, "I know exactly what to do." Opening one of her files, she pulled out a set of new missions that haven't been assigned yet. "Let's see… aha! A new mission from a village in the Earth Country." Scanning the list, she continued to read aloud to herself. "The annual festival celebrating the Day of Life… presentation of the rare Tourmaline gem… need protection… two qualified ninja… good!" Closing the scroll, she smirked at her plan. _Naruto is having a bad effect on me. I'm becoming childish._ She felt better by justifying her actions with Sakura. _She needs someone… and if Kakashi is that someone, then it's a good thing for me to help things along._ Thinking of Dan, she grabbed a bottle of sake, determined not to become sad. _It's time to put things in motion._

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Kakashi looked over at Sakura, smiling slightly as she dozed off into a peaceful sleep. He picked up her tea cup, putting it carefully in the sink so it wouldn't make noise. He then went to the hall closet and pulled out a small blanket. Draping it over her, he was struck once again by how much she had changed over the years.

She stirred in her sleep slightly, a small strand of hair falling in her face. Brushing it aside, he couldn't help but notice how soft her hair was. Leaning over slightly, his breath tickled her ear as he whispered, "Goodnight Sakura."

As he walked back into his room to get the hour or so of sleep that was left of the night, he heard a tiny whisper as he closed his door.

"Goodnight Kakashi."

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Sakura woke up as the sun was coming in. _I fell asleep here?!_ She tried to remember the last thing that happened before she dozed off. _I was listening to Kakashi talk about his favorite food… then…_ She recalled something about a blanket being put on her. And saying goodnight to Kakashi. _He didn't have to let me sleep here- he should've let me go home!_ Sighing, she folded the blanket. "He shouldn't have worried about my needs."

A sudden rapping came on the door. Sakura, recognizing how this might look to anyone who didn't understand their relationship, cursed under her breath. _I can't answer the door!_ She quietly slipped down the hallway, knocking gently on the bedroom door. "Kakashi! Are you awake?" Hearing no response, she was forced to open the door.

Kakashi was lying peacefully in the middle of the bed, the blankets covering his face slightly. Sakura couldn't help but wonder if he wore a mask, and very carefully tried to lift the blanket so she could see. _Damn…of course __**he**__ would wear a mask._ She leaned over and whispered, "Kakashi! You have to wake up!"

It took all of her power not to let out a small shriek of surprise as a hand instantly came to her mouth. Kakashi opened his eyes with a fierce look in them, only to see that it was Sakura. He closed his Sharingan eye, his normal one returning to a look of confusion and laced with concern. "What's the matter, Sakura?"

"Someone is at the door, and I can't answer it!!"

"Why not?"

One look from her and he realized how something completely innocent would be taken negatively. "Oh. Right." Motioning for Sakura to move over a little, he got out of bed. Opening the window, he breathed in the morning air and pulled Sakura over to stand next to him. "You can either stay here and wait for a moment, or climb out the window. The neighbors might still be asleep."

Her brow furrowed as she considered the circumstances. "Might be isn't good enough." Sighing, she sat down on his bed. "I'll stay here until you're done. If that's alright with you. I'll be gone as soon as the coast is clear. I'm really sorry about this. But… you should have told me to go home!"

Kakashi replied as he was walking down the hallway, saying "You were comfortably asleep. Besides, it's not really that much of a bother." He opened the door of his apartment to see a slightly hung-over Tsunade. _**This**__, on the other hand…_

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Tsunade was irritated, since she still had a small headache from all the sake she drank last night. "Why did it take you so long to answer the door?" Waving her hand slightly, she said, "Whatever. I've got something to tell you. You have a new assignment."

Kakashi's eye clearly showed the surprise he felt. "Tsunade-sama… I thought I was suspended from missions? Or is this something serious?"

Trying to make this sound as important as possible, Tsunade decided to make up a couple of lies to get him into the idea of the mission. "A village in the Earth country is having an important festival, where they are going to present a rare gem. This gem contains a great amount of power, and, if used in the wrong hands, would definitely cause a severe amount of damage. Since this mission is so important, I have decided to reinstate you, if only for this one mission."

_A rare gem infused with a lot of power? Why haven't I heard of it?_ Knowing that he should agree with her in order to avoid increasing her agitation, he nodded. "If you insist. Am I going on this mission alone, or with my usual team?"

Tsunade answered him, trying to keep a smile off her face. "This mission is important; however, I can only afford to send two ninja. You will be traveling with my apprentice, Sakura. Since you work well together, and because she has learned almost everything she can from me, I find that she would be the best ninja to accompany you. Is that alright?" She asked this question knowing that he could not, would not, say no.

_Something is up._ Although he knew that Tsunade was right, and that Sakura had become a ninja of great power and was well known, he was suspicious. _Why would she come over so early in the morning to tell me this?_ "That's fine. What time will we be leaving? Have you already informed Sakura?"

"No. But I have a splitting headache and a bunch of paperwork to do. You'd be catching up with her anyway, so you can just go over to her apartment and tell her." She began to walk away, then turned back slightly and added, "You'll be leaving at 1:00, so you'd better get everything packed and ready. You're going to need to be there by tomorrow evening at the latest." With that, she left.

Kakashi shut the door, not surprised to see Sakura standing at the edge of the hallway. "I guess I don't need to tell you what's happening." Noticing that she had folded up the blanket, he proceeded to put it away. "You should probably get going now. I'm sure that you'll want to shower, pack, and do whatever you need to. We'll meet at the village gates, alright?"

Nodding, she was about to head out the door when she gave Kakashi a quick hug. He looked down with a bit of shock on his face, looking at her flushed face as she said, "I just wanted to say thanks for, well… letting me in."

She left him to wonder at the hidden meaning behind her words.


	12. Chapter 12

Kakashi stood at Obito's shrine, his hands in his pockets. "Obito… I've broken so many promises. Failed to protect so many people. But now…" He sighed, his hand running through his hair. "I can't make promises anymore. But I will try to keep her safe. If it takes all that I have." He left the site, leaving a small container of incense burning in front of it.

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Sakura stood at the village gates, sighing as she checked the time. _It's 1:17…_ Knowing why he wasn't there didn't make it any easier for her not to be impatient. "Kakashi, where are you?" _We're going to be late, and I don't want Tsunade-sama's wrath._

"Sakura, are you ready?" Kakashi stood expectantly, a large pack on his shoulders.

_I can't be mad at him. Not for visiting Obito's grave…_ Still, she wasn't going to let him completely off the hook. "Kakashi, I've been the one waiting for _you_, unless your memory is failing. Then again…" she smiled mischievously. "That could be a sign of old age." _Let's see how you like that!_

"Old?" He walked over to her, a mockingly stern look in his eye. "Here." He grabbed her hand, putting it on his heart. "Does that sound like the heart of an old man to you? You, as a medical ninja, should know."

Her face turned crimson, grateful that he didn't know how her own heart had sped up a little. "Great. You're not old. Can you let go now? We have a mission, you know. And we have to make it to the Earth Country by tomorrow evening." Her hand free, she started heading off, not fully paying attention to where she was going.

Amused, Kakashi caught up with her, saying, "Sakura. You're going the wrong way." He spun her around, pointing her body in the right direction. "I'm feeling a bit competitive today. Must be the working of Gai. But…" he looked over at her, his eyes creased in a mischievous way. "Let's race."

Before she could say a word, he had already started. Clenching her teeth in a competitive smile, she chased after him. _There's no way I'm going to lose to him!_

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Night fell as both Sakura and Kakashi, somewhat wearied, began to set up camp. Sakura chuckled under her breath as she set up the tent. "I totally beat you, Kakashi." _Although… I did cheat a little bit._ Not hearing a response, she turned around expecting a sullen Kakashi. Her teasing smile fell off her face as Kakashi stumbled over to her, a kunai sticking out of his neck. "Kakashi!" She ran over to him, trying to hide the tears that were threatening to pour out. "I can fix this! I can fix this! I can-"

As soon as she touched the kunai, her face turned from horror and sorrow into pure rage. "I'm going to _kill_ you for that!" She wheeled around to see the real Kakashi squatting up in a tree. _I can't believe I fell for that! I haven't done something like that since I was 12!_

Kakashi jumped down from the trees, landing softly in front of Sakura. "I call it… getting even." His eye, which had been full of amusement at his scheme a moment ago, went to showing a small twinge of regret. "Sakura, I'm sor-"

"I think it's time for you to start your watch. Wake me up in a couple of hours." Leaving him standing there, she entered the tent, not making another sound. Kakashi slumped down on a tree stump, wondering why things hadn't gone according to plan.

Sakura lay down on her sleeping mat, eyes open and unable to sleep. "How could he do that?" she mumbled under her breath. Once again, she was surprised at the extent of her emotion. _It's clouded my judgment. I should've been able to see right through that illusionary technique._ This concerned her the most; had she become so close to Kakashi that she wasn't able to function well as a ninja? _No, that's impossible. I was completely justified in your concern! I would have acted the same if it was Naruto, or any of my friends. Right?_

Kakashi, still outside, put his chin in his hands. _In retrospect, that wasn't such a good idea._ "Still…" he whispered to himself. "She shouldn't have become so upset. It was a basic illusion." _The only other time she didn't see through an illusion was when…_ "When she saw the illusion of Sasuke." A sudden heavy air seemed to fall down on him. _Does she…_ "She wouldn't. Shouldn't. Doesn't." But then, all of the events from the past couple of weeks came flooding through his mind. _Does she care about me as much as she did about Sasuke?_

Sakura felt a breeze, and looked up to see Kakashi standing at the entrance of the tent. Still mad at him, she tried to make her voice as icy as possible as she asked, "Is it my turn to stand watch?"

The tone in her voice almost stopped him. _Maybe I was wrong…_ But a 22-year-old Jounin who falls for a basic illusionary technique? Not as likely. "Sakura…"

The gentleness of his voice surprised her. "What?"

Coming into the tent and kneeling beside her, he looked into her eyes with sincere regret. "I'm sorry for what I did. It was… careless. I misinterpreted the situation." He sat down opposite of her, trying to think of how to formulate his next thoughts into speech. "Sakura… I'm trying to understand something. It concerns why you weren't able to tell that I was using an illusion."

Sakura knew what he was going to ask next, and immediately jumped up from the mat she was lying on. "I think it's my turn to take over after all. I'll wake you up in a couple of hours." She left him in the tent, grateful for the darkness that hid her tinged face. _What's up with all of this blushing? Stupid body._ She sighed as she leaned against a tree. Looking up into the stars as if they held the answer, she softly asked, "When did I start caring so much about him?"

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Kakashi woke up to the sound of chirping. _She didn't wake me up to switch out. She's going to be exhausted…_ Sure enough, he walked outside of the tent to see a half-asleep Sakura trying to make something for breakfast. "Sakura, you're worn out. Why didn't you wake me up?"

_Because I didn't want you to ask me questions that I'm afraid to answer!_ When she looked up and saw the surprise in his eye, she covered her mouth with a small gasp. _Did I say that out loud?_ Her eyes struggled to stay open as she tried to explain what she meant.

Kakashi didn't let her get that far. He walked over and, without a word, grabbed her shoulders, forcing her into the tent. "Sleep. Or at the very least, rest. I'll get you when breakfast is ready, and the rest of the camp is picked up." He walked out of the tent and began to pull out some food from his pack, still shocked by the newest bit of information he had on her thoughts. _Questions that she's afraid to answer? She must not realize how hard it is to ask the questions._

An hour later he went to wake up Sakura. _I hope she's had enough rest… but we seriously need to get moving if we're going to make it on time._ Opening the tent, he saw her peacefully sleeping. Gently touching her shoulder he whispered, "Sakura. It's time to get up now."

Sakura woke up, Kakashi being the only thing she saw as her eyes fluttered open. "Kakashi…" Shaking off the dream that she had been having, she stood up and began to roll up their mats. Determined not to look tired, she proceeded to put the tent away. "Alright then… let's get going."

The two continued with their journey, both to the Earth Country and to realizing what they were really feeling.


	13. Chapter 13

They arrived at the village in the late afternoon. Slightly dust-covered, Kakashi and Sakura headed to what appeared to be the center of the town. Banners were up everywhere, and there was a cascade of different colors from confetti flying out to greet them, kissing their faces gently before touching the ground.

A booming, merry voice greeted them. "Hello there, Leaf Ninja! I take it that you are the ones sent to us to protect our gem from thieves?" A portly and cheerful man walked up to meet them, his face slightly flushed from already starting to drink. "Come, come! Make yourselves comfortable. The festival will begin in an hour or so. You two are free to participate in any activities, so long as the gem is your first priority."

While walking through the village, Kakashi took note of any shady characters. He also noted the looks that some of the men in the village were giving Sakura. Although he knew that she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, he involuntarily moved an inch closer to her as a sign of warning.

Sakura, not noticing Kakashi's reaction, was observing the number of women who were slightly ogling Kakashi. _What are they looking at?_ Turning to look around, she said loudly, "Why don't you guys just take a picture? It'll last longer." Kakashi had to smile at that, although he thought that she was talking to the men.

Their host, who had been rambling about the village history, turned and looked at her quizzically. "No need for pictures just yet, Haruno-san. That happens at the very end of the festival; just after the Unveiling of the Masks!" He turned and looked at Kakashi. "Looks like you've already got your outfit ready!"

Kakashi's lazy eye widened in surprise, looking from their host to Sakura. Seeing the glimmer of excitement in her eyes, Kakashi sighed. _Damn._

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Night had fallen, and the brilliant stars helped in illuminating the festival. Sakura had dressed for the occasion, wearing a slender dress that matched the emerald color of her eyes. Over her face was a white mask that she bought earlier. She waited for Kakashi to come out of the room he was renting, tapping her foot impatiently. _What is he doing? I swear he's worse than Ino._

Just then, Kakashi casually walked out the door. He cursed slightly as he tried to put his hands in nonexistent pockets. He was wearing a midnight blue kimono, which was styled differently in order to allow for the sudden movement of a ninja. It conveniently matched the color of his mask, and he looked over at Sakura, waiting for a silent judgment. His lazy eye widened as he realized… she was laughing at him?!

Sakura couldn't stop giggling. _Kakashi-sensei, who is always wearing a ninja uniform and toting his Icha Icha books… wearing a kimono?!_ Seeing his eye widen in shock, she stifled her chuckles. "Ignore me for a moment, please." Composing herself, she continued. "I wasn't laughing at how you look, if that's what you were wondering."

Turning to lock his door, he then decreased the distance between them in a fluid motion. Looking at her in an analytical manner, he asked, "Oh, really? Then what, Sakura, do you find so humorous?"

"I was just thinking of how you never wear anything but your ninja outfit." Trying to convince him, she felt one of the sleeves, as if appraising it. "It looks good on you. You should wear stuff like this more often." Feeling him stiffen at her touch, she quickly dropped her hand, mumbling a small "Sorry."

He picked up her hand casually, as if it were the most natural thing to do, and gently pulled her along. "It's time to go to the opening of the festival."

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It was an explosion of color and life. Sakura milled about, happy to be in the midst of such a friendly crowd. She stopped at various stands, smelling perfumes and examining jewelry. _What a vibrant place to live!_ Pausing to watch a magic show, she quickly scanned the area. _I can't forget why I'm here._ Kakashi had wandered to the other side of the festival, maintaining security.

He looked over and met her eye, signaling that everything was okay on the end that he was at. _Looks like everything's clear for now._ He headed back over to Sakura just as a peal of trumpets and other instruments signaled everyone to the center of the town.

"Once a year we celebrate the wonderful prosperity that has been bestowed upon this, our marvelous village. As is tradition, a tradition that I might add has been carried out for over a hundred years, we are now pleased to unveil the Tourmaline gem!" With an elegant wave, a series of curtains fell, revealing an enormous red gem, elegantly carved to display an array of colors as a series of small lights shone off of it.

Amidst all of the cheers of the town, Kakashi heard a small intake of breath next to him. He looked down at Sakura, seeing her eyes glow in the beauty of the gem. The different shades of red caressed her face, making it look soft and… beautiful. _She really has grown._ His direction was shifted as the man on stage continued to speak.

"Now that we have basked in the wondrous light from our Gem of Life, it is now time for another tradition. If you all are ready… it is time for the Unveiling of the Masks! Please turn to your neighbor and assist them in the removal of their masks. Who knows who you've been talking with the whole evening?"

_That_ caught Kakashi's attention. Everyone around them began to pull of each other's masks, and small squeals of surprise and delight emanated through the crowd. He noticed Sakura shifting uncomfortably, looking at him out of the corner of her eye. He sighed, already knowing what she was going to say before the words came out of her mouth. He turned to her and took off her mask, already knowing the face that was behind it. Although… _She's wearing make-up?_ The added hint of red that touched her lips was unmistakable.

Sakura let Kakashi take off her mask, not sure of what to do next. _Well… __**this**__ is rather awkward._ Remembering how she, Naruto, and Sasuke had once tried to see Kakashi's real face made her smile. She looked up into his eye, the question clearly showing through her eyes. Smiling at her boldness, she slowly began to bring her hands up to that blue mask that had for so long covered one of the biggest mysteries of the man in front of her.

Kakashi's eye widened at her movement, and he put his hands on hers, almost as if to stop her. Then he saw the look in her eyes; a hidden fire that would not be stopped. It surprised him, and instead of stopping her, he led her hands to the edge of his mask. She began to lower it slowly, torturously slow for him. When his full face was revealed, he looked at her face for any sign of reaction. Seeing her face fall slightly, he looked at her with a certain degree of unease. Trying to maintain his nonchalance, he casually asked, "Well? Disappointed?"

After thinking for a moment, Sakura said, "Yes."

_What?_ He was surprised by how her words affected him. _Why should I care? _Before he could continue with his thoughts, he was again surprised by what she was doing.

Stepping closer to him, she looked into his eye and smiled. Her heart was racing as she thought to herself, _Stop! What are you doing?_ Pushing all thoughts aside, she gently put a hand on his cheek, her voice soft as she said, "You're much too handsome."

If his eye was wide before, it was raised even farther by this statement. Kakashi was, for the first time in his life, unsure of what to do. This wasn't like anything he had encountered. But… the tender feel of her hand on his face, the night sky… _This festival is affecting me._ He saw the stars reflecting out of Sakura's eyes as the unthinkable happened. Something that, when he first met her, he would never have expected to happen. What no one would have predicted.

They kissed.

It was a soft kiss. Gentle. Light as a feather. But it affected Kakashi and Sakura more than they could ever have expected. Sakura looked up at Kakashi, one thought dominating both of their minds.

Things would never be the same again.


	14. Chapter 14

It was evening, and Tsunade was finally done with her work. Although she was irritated by having to do so much paperwork, one thought kept her going through the day. Smiling smugly to herself, she thought, _I wonder how the mission is going for Kakashi and Sakura?_ She pulled out the mission details, gently tapping her chin. "They might be a little mad that I lied about the mission, but…"

An instant later, she jumped up, cursing herself for not reading the mission details in its entirety. "How could I miss that?!" She hurried out of the room, leaving the pages of the mission's details scattered on her desk. The last page was on top, and it read:

_"Although the Tourmaline gem is well sought after for its beauty, there is also another reason why it must be protected. Few know, but the Tourmaline gem has the ability to grant power to whoever possesses it. This is the reason why our village has been able to prosper over the years. It has been in our possession for over a hundred years, but… we fear that it will be stolen this year. Our typical watchmen have reported strange visitors who asked about the gem, and then vanished. We thank you for…"_

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Sakura couldn't move. _Did I just… _The answer was yes._ I kissed Kakashi!_ He was her former sensei! He had been her friend, almost like a father figure. She saw him looking at her, and the look in his eye was enough to let her know that he was also shocked. Unsure.

Kakashi stood there, not able to do anything but look at her. _Sakura… _It wasn't as if it was his first time kissing someone. But… _This is Sakura. My former student. I shouldn't…_ He knew that what just happened had changed everything. _Or did it? Do I care about Sakura, more than as a friend?_

Realizing that they stood silently for about a minute of awkwardness, Sakura coughed slightly. "Kakashi… I-"

Whatever she was going to say would remain a mystery, as an enormous explosion came from behind one of the tents, and a kunai shot out and killed the man who was talking. Instantly, the villagers began to run around in panic, calling for loved ones, screaming, and locking doors. Kakashi immediately covered his face, revealed his Sharingan, and assumed a defensive position, hands ready to perform necessary jutsus. "Sakura, get ready!"

She already was. Sakura lifted her dress slightly to reveal explosion notes tied and ready around her leg, along with various other weapons. Kakashi had to smile, thinking, _Quite a resourceful young woman._ His eyes began scanning the area, and just past the stage that held the gem were a pair of eyes, glinting in the light. "There!" He threw a kunai, only to have it deflected by… _Is that paper?!_

Both Sakura and Kakashi were surprised at the woman who stepped out from the shadows. Her hair was blue, with a delicate paper flower on one side. And she clearly had the robes of a member of Akatsuki. She contemplated the two ninja, as they were the only ones that didn't run away. "If you leave now, I promise I won't kill you."

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Naruto sat on a stool at Ichiraku Ramen, a red flush on his face as he finished telling Hinata his latest joke. "And so, the two antennas met on a roof, fell in love and got married. The ceremony wasn't much, but the reception was excellent." Laughing at his own joke, he felt an immense sense of pride as Hinata let out a cute little chuckle.

"Naruto-kun… you have such a good sense of humor." She blushed heavily at the beaming look on his face, and turned a deeper shade of red when he put his arm around her, still smiling goofily. He opened his mouth to say something when his arm was suddenly, violently pulled.

Naruto flew through the tent and found himself facing Tsunade. "Hey, old hag- why are you interrupting my date?!" He was about to say something else when he noticed the expression on her face. "What's wrong? Is anyone in danger?"

After explaining the nature of the mission, Tsunade sighed as she said, "It was supposed to be simple enough. If it wasn't for that last page…" She looked at Naruto. "You are one of the stronger ninja, and since they are your usual teammates, I want you to be the one to go after them. Of course, you can take anyone that you feel you need."

"What about volunteers?"

Naruto and Tsunade both turned, their faces in shock at seeing a slightly injured Sai, who just returned from a two-month long mission in the Land of Snow. He looked at them with his seemingly transparent eyes and continued to speak. "It would seem that Kakashi-senpai and Sakura-san are in trouble. It is important for friends to help each other in times of trouble. Yes?"

Tsunade stood there, trying to think of how to handle this. "You just got back from an extensive mission, and have yet to be inspected for the severity of your injuries. You could have an internal bleeding somewhere and end up hurting yourself and hindering Naruto on his mission."

Sai gave them a smile, which caused the two of them to shudder inwardly at the insincerity of it. "I would never be a hindrance to Naruto-kun. And besides…" His face began to show real emotion, if only for an instant. "Sakura-san is my friend too. It would be unseemly for me to stay behind." With that, he grabbed Naruto's arm and headed for the village gates, pulling out his book on how to be a friend. "Just like it says. Good."

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Sakura stood next to Kakashi, staring at the strange woman. _She's clearly from Akatsuki, but… what's with the paper?_ Gritting her teeth slightly, she assumed an aggressive stance and said, "If you leave now, _I_ promise that I won't kill _you_." She cracked her knuckles slightly, in order to more fully convey her message.

Kakashi looked at her, slightly wearily. "Sakura, don't be cocky." His eyes went wide as his Sharingan let him see what the woman was about to do. He threw himself over Sakura just as a series of sharp paper figurines flew in her direction. He looked down at her, ignoring his feelings and using the reprimanding voice that he would use with an insubordinate student. "You know better than that."

Sakura nodded, and immediately pushed him off her as the woman across from them began to send down a rain of needle-shaped paper. _Where is she getting all of this paper from?_ _Stupid question- there's paper flyers everywhere, confetti, and other nonsense._ She rushed forward, her hand laced with chakra as she began to attack.

Kakashi moved his hands rapidly in a jutsu, only to see Sakura standing in the way. _I can't attack with her so close._ "Sakura, you have to move!" He used his replication jutsu to create several clones, using one of them to move Sakura out of the way. Drawing water from nearby jugs, he said, _"Suikodan no Jutsu!"_ A powerful surge of water went to attack the woman, when… _It didn't affect her?_ His brows creased as he wondered what could have happened. _It's paper… so why didn't it sop up?_

The woman smiled and asked, "Having trouble, Hatake Kakashi of the Hidden Leaf Village? And you, Haruno Sakura?" Seeing their surprise, she said, "Do you honestly think that after fighting us, we wouldn't gather more information on you?" Folding a piece of paper into a seemingly harmless origami, she added, "Of course, it would be rude if I didn't introduce myself." While the two ninja dodged the giant crane that shot out at them, she said, "My name- rather, what you will know me as- is Konan."

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Naruto ran next to Sai, grumbling slightly at the fact that he was forced to share a mission with only him. _Considering what happened last time, though…_ He shuddered at the thought. An instant later, he almost crashed as Sai stopped in front of him. "What are you doing?! We don't have time to stop."

Sai looked at him, with that expressionless face. "We have to rest, even if it's only for a moment." Pausing slightly, he asked, "Would you like to sleep toge- hey, why are you on the ground?"

Naruto couldn't move. _Did he just…_ His face grew horrified, then angry. "What the hell are you saying?!"

Sai, confused as ever, pulled out his book on friendship and said, "The book says that friends often spend the night at each other's houses and, what is the expression… 'Goof off'. Since that isn't possible at the moment, I thought it would be easier if we just used the tent and pretended it was a house. Did I say something wrong?"

Naruto shakily stood, wishing his teammate was able to understand how to phrase questions, and more generally to interact socially. "That… was… ugh. Let's just keep going."

Still slightly confused, Sai just nodded his head, and they flew off into the trees.

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A couple of hours later, Kakashi and Sakura stood with their hands on their knees, watching the robed Akatsuki member with caution. Sakura turned to Kakashi, saying, "We have to end this soon. We haven't managed to land a scratch on her, and we're starting to get more serious injuries." She winced slightly as her shifting put increased pressure on her right leg, where a deep gash was bleeding. At the same time she noticed Kakashi had a cut across his chest, where his outfit was stained red.

Kakashi, still watching Konan, assessed the situation. _She's right- this woman is incredibly strong. And the paper is her ultimate protection- she's even created wings for herself in order to dodge any fire attacks._ He looked over at Sakura, and couldn't help but wince as he looked at her wounds. "Heal yourself- I'll keep her busy."

Konan sighed slightly. "There's not enough time for that. I'm done with this fight- it's not fair to let you suffer so." She quickly moved, saying, _"Shikigami no Mai!"_ Her body transformed into paper, and she began to swell as she transfigured herself into a giant crane.

_She's going to take the crystal!_ Sakura ran forward in an attempt to stop her. _She'll just stop me with the paper- there's only one thing to do!_ Focusing what was left of her chakra, Sakura, instead of trying to inhibit Konan, turned her attention to the gem. As her fist met the gem, she felt an insane surge of power as it shattered into millions of tiny pieces.

Kakashi's eyes widened as Sakura disappeared in a flash of red light. He heard the voice of Konan, as she let out a small cry of anger.

"You've ruined this plan, Haruno Sakura. But rest assured, the Akatsuki will get what it wants. You're going to regret what you've done."

Kakashi tried to hurry to the source of sound, but everything was illuminated in a blinding red glow. "Sakura, where are you?" He thought he heard a scream, and became increasingly concerned. "Sakura! Answer me!" A brighter flash of red seemed to come near him, but with the whooshing sound of paper it disappeared. After that, all Kakashi saw was darkness.

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Naruto and Sai finally arrived at the village, only to see a desolate place. Carts were turned over, houses destroyed, and, in the center… "Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto and Sai ran over to him, wondering who could have left him in such a state.

Kakashi woke to see the two ninja standing over him. "What… happened?" A flood of memories came crashing through his mind. He leapt up, exclaiming, "Sakura!" He almost fell over from exhaustion, and Naruto had to help him stand.

"Kakashi-sensei… what happened? Where is Sakura-chan?!"

"Gone. Taken."

Even Sai showed emotion from this revelation. _Why would they take Sakura-san?_ Naruto grabbed Kakashi by the shoulders, asking, "Who took her?!"

"The Akatsuki. A woman… named Konan."

Naruto was slightly perturbed by the reaction of his former teacher. "What's wrong with you?" _I've never seen him so affected by a missing teammate. Or anyone, for that matter._

Realizing how he was acting, Kakashi's brows furrowed as he shook Naruto off. Standing up straighter, he covered his Sharingan and looked over the expanse. "I'm not going to lose anyone anymore. Especially not…" He shook his head and turned to Sai and Naruto. "We're going to save her."


	15. Chapter 15

Sakura regained consciousness only to find out that she was constrained and alone in a dark room. _What happened?! The last thing I remember is destroying the gem…_ When she tried to move, she stifled a cry as all of the nerves in her body screamed in pain. Gritting her teeth and trying to ignore the pain, she began to struggle to get out, not hearing the door open as she tumbled around on the dirty floor.

"I'd stop struggling if I was you."

She whipped her head up to see the voice belonged to a strange man with an orange mask that covered everything but his right eye. That small fact made her think of Kakashi, and she remembered that he was there when she was taken. _Is he alright?! What happened to him?!_ Feelings of worry and stress made her even more livid. "Really now? Well, if you were me, then I'd be you, and I'd let me out before something bad happened."

Turning his head to the side as if to see if anyone was coming, he put on a fake cheery voice and said, "Tobi is a good boy. He brought you food!" He then slowly closed the door, letting it shut with a gentle tap. Muttering a couple of words, he then turned his direction towards Sakura. "Good. Now they won't be able to hear our little conversation. You see, I've been trying to figure some things out, Sakura."

Her eyebrows furrowed in slight confusion and (still agitated) she retorted with, "What makes you think that you can use my name without honorifics and expect me to answer you?"

The small part of his eye showing appeared to glint and he leaned forward, saying, "You're not exactly in the position to speak so brashly, now, are you?" He chuckled slightly and continued, saying, "You should be lucky to be alive. If anyone else had destroyed the gem… well, besides me… he or she would have been destroyed."

Sakura's mouth gaped in silent shock. Before she could say anything, however, he cut her off by adding, "It's a simple matter of the power that is- was- inside the gem. After you destroyed it, it tried to go into the nearest source possible- you. With all of that energy, you should have died instantly. This is why I find you interesting, at best. You have a good amount of chakra (not as much as the Jinchuuriki, of course, but still a lot), and the way you controlled it while the gem's power was trying to control you… was something that couldn't be done by many."

Sakura's mouth was still open. _Why the hell is he complimenting my chakra control?_ She gave a malicious smirk and said, "I'm glad you like it so much. You'll be able to appreciate it a little more when I use it to destroy that mask of yours. And the rest of your body."

In an instant, her nose was touching the ground as the man held her head down with his right hand, his knee on her back. "Again with the insolence. Really, now. Is that any way to treat the man who's trying to help you?" Upon hearing no response, he murmured, "And to think this is the girl who wanted to save Sasuke."

Upon hearing _that_ name, Sakura violently pushed against the hand that was holding her down. "What do you know about Sasuke? Who are you, really? Why didn't you just kill me, if I'm not anyone special?"

Letting her go, he tapped his mask as if in a thoughtful manner. "Well… I don't know if I should answer. After all, you haven't been very nice. However… I might let you in on a couple of secrets. Sasuke is my latest project. He's coming along quite nicely- if you're nice, I might let you see him." Sakura twitched slightly under his hand. "As for why I'm not going to kill you, well… you might be useful in getting the Kyuubi for me. The host is your friend, right?"

Sakura tried to hold in the gasp that still escaped through her lips. _Naruto!_ Of course he would come and try to save her. _I just hope that he doesn't come alone- maybe he'll go with-_ She then remembered the one thing she needed to know. Struggling with all her strength (which was no small feat), she asked, "What happened to Kakashi? Is he alive? Is he here? What did you do to him?!"

"The man you were fighting besides? Well… hm. I think Konan said something about having to kill him. There was no other way, apparently." Seeing that her body became quite still, he released his hold on her. "Oh, dear… was he close to you? I'm _so_ sorry." The complete lack of sincerity caused Sakura to turn over, sending him a death glare. "Well, I'll leave you for now. I'll be back soon, with water or whatever you might need nutritionally." Straightening a little, he opened the door and, with the fake voice said, "Have a nice day now!"

The sound of the door slamming shut left Sakura alone, silent, in the dark. The only thing that could be seen or heard were tears falling down her face as the light from the moon hit her face, sparkling as they trickled down her cheeks and splashed to the ground.

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Kakashi sped through the trees, following his pack of dogs and trying to ignore the questions from Naruto and Sai. _Focus. You're letting this affect you too much._ But with every movement he made, every noise he heard, he couldn't help but be worried. _Where is she? What are they doing to her?_

"Kakashi-sensei, slow down! You're still injured, since we don't have a medic nin-" one look from Kakashi was enough to shut Naruto up.

While Naruto was asking about what happened and pestering Kakashi for details on the whole evening, Sai was bothering him just as much with his blunt statements and calculating mind.

"You seem to be out of sorts, Kakashi-senpai. I want to know what happened the other night as well. Did you and Sakura-san-" Naruto was the one that gave Sai a look this time.

"Are you crazy? Guys and girls don't have sleepovers. And besides, Sakura-chan and Kakashi-sensei don't really hang out much. He's just worried because she's part of the team! Right, Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi just nodded, trying to ignore the two young men behind him. _Sakura…_ His thoughts were stopped by the fact that his dogs stopped running. Scratching one behind the ears, he asked, "What's wrong?"

Pakkun looked up at him, answering by saying, "Her scent's all muddled up because of the terrain. Apparently, we just missed an intense rainstorm. My guess is that this is the land where the Hidden Village of Rain comes from."

Kakashi's eyebrow rose. "The Hidden Village of Rain? Why would they take Sakura here?"

Sai, who had been trying to figure out what was different about his team leader, stored this new revelation in his mind to question Kakashi with later. _He calls Sakura-san Sakura? With no honorifics at all?_

Pakkun continued, saying, "If we continue for a while, we might be able to pick something up again. The rain was recent enough that her scent isn't completely gone."

Kakashi nodded. "Let's get moving then."

And off they flew.

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Sakura shuffled into a sitting position against the wall next to the door, her mind and body numb. _He can't be dead. He just can't. I won't believe it._ She remembered all of the different missions that he had been on, the times that he had always come out alright in the end. _He's tricked people into thinking he's dead before._ Clinging onto this thought like a life ring, Sakura began to come up with a strategy on how to escape.

She became so focused in her thoughts that she didn't notice the presence that entered the room. "So, Sakura, I trust that you've gotten over your precious teammate? Because I have a surprise for you." Stepping to the side, Tobi revealed the person who Konoha had tried to save so many times, and who Sakura had once cared so much for.

Uchiha Sasuke looked down at Sakura's slightly disheveled form, a look of indifference on his face. "So, 'Tobi' tells me that you are actually quite powerful. I have to say though…" he looked her up and down. "You still look pathetic to me."

Sakura's look of hope instantly turned into one of anger and regret. "Sasuke-kun… why are you still like this? How many more people do you have to kill before you realize your mistakes? We'd forgive you if you'd just-" Before she could finish, Tobi moved Sasuke out of the room.

"Well, did you enjoy seeing him again? I certainly hope so, because you won't see him for a while. Unless…" His eye appeared to narrow as he turned his face down to look at her. "You help me. Of course, I'll get what I want anyway, but if you cooperate with me I might let you see your precious 'Sasuke-kun' later. You should be happy about that. From what he told me, you used to be quite infatuated with him."

Sakura snarled, saying, "Those times are over. Sasuke-kun has changed, and so have I. I still want him to return to Konoha, but as a friend and former teammate."

Tobi tilted his head curiously, as if studying her. "I see… so, did your love of Sasuke fall because he left you? Or because you fell in love with the man who Konan killed? You seemed oddly concerned about him."

The look of surprise on her face was enough to let him know. Chuckling slightly, he picked Sakura up, hoisting over her shoulder as he began to tell her about how he was going to use her to finally obtain the power of the Kyuubi.

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Pakkun and the other dogs stopped at the edge of the tree line, panting slightly. "There's a village in the clearing, so be careful." They disappeared in a cloud of smoke as Kakashi terminated the jutsu.

Kakashi signaled to Sai and Naruto to approach with caution, which Sai followed. Naruto, on the other hand, was about to yell out for them to release Sakura. _He'll lead them right to us!_ Kakashi was about to cover his mouth and give him a good whack for his stupidity when Sai whispered, "I see Sakura-san!"

Sure enough, she was tied to a post just outside the village. Kakashi sighed in relief. _She's alive…_ Although she was slightly dirty and still had dried blood caked on her leg, Kakashi couldn't see any new injuries. _Good._ He used his Inner Decapitation Technique to travel undetected through the ground, popping up right next to her. Whispering softly, he asked, "Sakura? Are you alright?"

Sakura whipped her head up, a look of fear in her eyes. The look instantly turned to one of surprise, then disbelief, then a pained kind of happiness. _I must be dreaming…_

Kakashi couldn't help but think, _what have they done to her?_ Seeing that she was gagged, he removed the cloth around her mouth. He proceeded to remove the knots around her arms and legs, trying to see if any further injury had been caused.

Sakura almost fell, her limbs weak from not being used. Kakashi gently held her up, and she couldn't help but stare at him. _This is real…_ Her voice slightly throaty, she said, "They told me you were dead. Kakashi…" She was about to continue, when she remembered what was about to happen. She turned around and put her hand on his mouth. "You have to get out of here! It's a trap- there's this man called Tobi, and he's trying to use me to get the Kyuubi out of Naruto-kun!"

Kakashi swore under his breath. He was about to tell her that he was taking her with him when she added, "I saw Sasuke-kun."

Kakashi stiffened slightly, slightly surprised by the hurt that this fact brought him. _Would seeing him… make her remember how she once felt?_ He then shook his head, thinking, _what difference does it make? I'm sure that the kiss was just because of the mood of the festival. How could she ever want…_

"I have to stay. But not for the reasons that you might think." She gave him a small smile. "Sasuke-kun is still important. As a friend, and a former teammate. I might be able to save him- just make sure Naruto-kun stays away, and you have to go too. I can't-" her face fell slightly, and Kakashi noticed a small set of tears struggling to come out. With a voice full of emotion, she said, "I can't lose you again."

Kakashi was about to wipe away her tears, when he remembered where he was. And that Naruto and Sai were just outside of view, waiting for his signal. "Sakura, Naruto and Sai are here. And we're not leaving without you."

"Kakashi… you don't understand. This guy… is different than he leads on. He's older. More powerful. I can sense it in his chakra signature. It's too dangerous- they won't kill me yet, they need me. I'll be fine." Sakura was about to say something in response when she saw the look in his eye. _I've never seen him so…_

"Do you think that it was easy for m- the rest of us? Not knowing whether or not you were still alive, trying to track your scent and not knowing what might be at the end of the trail…" Sighing, he looked over at where Naruto and Sai should have been standing. "I am not going to leave. Naruto will, though. They don't know that he's here yet, so it shouldn't be an issue-"

"Oh, don't they now?"

Sakura and Kakashi turned to see Sasuke throw Naruto and Sai at their feet. "Sasuke-kun, you don't know what you're doing!"

Sasuke smirked and looked at Sakura. "Let's see how much you've learned, Sakura-san." His smirk fell a little as he noticed the closeness of Kakashi and Sakura, and at the defensive position that Kakashi had over her. "How very interesting…"

Kakashi revealed his Sharingan eye and tried to step between the two, when Sakura put her hand in front of him. Taking another step closer to Sasuke, she said, "Sasuke-kun, it doesn't have to be like this. We can take you home- everything would be forgiven. You just have to try to-"

Sasuke's smirk regained its form with that. "Too afraid to fight me, Sakura? Is it because you know that I'm going to win? Well, before we fight… I should let you know. It is my mission to destroy the village that destroyed my family. The Uchiha clan. You're too weak to understand, or to beat me."

Sakura's face turned into a scowl, and she pushed Kakashi slightly behind her. "I'm not going to kill you, Sasuke-kun, but I _am_ going to hurt you. A lot." She focused her chakra as he began to pull out his sword, and the battle began.


	16. Chapter 16

Sakura ran past Kakashi and narrowly dodged Sasuke's sword as she began to fight. Focusing her chakra into her fists, she got closer and closer to hitting him. _I've got… to keep… trying! One hit and he's out- we could bring him home!_

The one benefit from Sakura using physical combat was that it was harder for Sasuke to use his Sharingan eyes. Sasuke appeared to effortlessly dodge her blows, but in his mind he thought, _I might actually have to be careful when-_ One of Sakura's punches grazed his rib cage, and his eyes went wide with shock. _What?_

Sakura assumed that he was pretending to be hurt. _Based on what I hit… the most I could've done was give him a couple of broken ribs._ She instantly leapt back as he took a swing with his sword, striking where her head had just been. _He's going all out- but I can't afford to. This gives him an advantage._

Sasuke used the space between them to quickly move his hands in a jutsu. _"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!"_ A series of fireballs went speeding towards Sakura, flying through the air at an intense rate.

Sakura dodged them, trying to goad Sasuke into doing something stupid. "Is that all you've learned, Sasuke-kun? I thought you would have-" Her words were stopped as a kunai hidden in the midst of a fireball flew towards her head. Sasuke was about to start smiling when he saw that his kunai really only hit a log.

"Is that all you can do, Sakura? Dodge, run, cowardly acts just as before? Or were you expecting everyone else to save you, just like it was back then? You really are pathetic. Why would I want to come back to-" his words were stopped by an attack from above.

Sakura came soaring through the air to Sasuke, her _Tsutenkyaku_ technique building in power as she focused her chakra. Her leg barely hit Sasuke in the shoulder, sending him back a few feet but not injuring him as much as it could have. _He's too quick for such attacks… I'm going to have to try the other techniques Tsunade-sama taught me._

Sasuke touched his shoulder, as if brushing off the injury. He was secretly trying to hide his surprise. "I see you've learned a few tricks, Sakura. But that isn't going to change anything. I still mean to win this fight." Jumping back a few feet, his hands once again rapidly moved in a succession of forms. _"Sofushasan no Tachi!"_ Windmill blades with wires attached wrapped around Sakura, tying her to the wall of a nearby house, but before she could escape Sasuke continued his attack, saying, _"Katon: Ryuka no Jutsu!"_

As the fire traveled along the wires and hit Sakura, she tried not to scream as she was burned by the scorching flames. _Focus, Sakura! Heal!_ She focused all of her chakra, letting it wash out over her body as the flames began to fade. While her clothes were burnt and ripped in some places, and she had lost a significant amount of chakra, Sakura assumed a fighting stance.

_She's also a medic ninja?_ Sasuke expected Sakura to be weak- he assumed that after he left, she had lost herself in childish misery. What he had seen earlier when Tobi showed her to him led him to believe that she was still pathetic. But if this was only a part of her new abilities, he would have to show her how much _he_ had learned.

_This is going to get interesting._

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Tsunade stood at the village gates, her brows furrowed in concern. _They should have returned by now…_ Sighing, she turned and watched the sun set. _I can't send any more ninja- besides, it's Sakura, Kakashi, Naruto, and Sai- some of the village's best ninja._ Speaking to no one, she said, "They're on their own. All we can do is hope and wait."

While she was walking back into the village, she failed to notice the eye glinting in the fading sun. As she closed the gates, the person vanished into the shadows and a small chuckle could be heard.

"Everything is falling into place."

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Kakashi stood over Naruto and Sai, trying to revive them while at the same time itching to help Sakura in the fight against Sasuke. He winced every time Sasuke managed to hit her with a jutsu or his sword, and cheered silently as she managed to land successful blows. Focusing his attention on the two young men, he began to lose patience as he saw Sasuke give Sakura a cut on her right arm. "Wake up, you two- didn't I train you better than this?"

To his relief, he saw Naruto shake his head and mumble, "Kakashi-sensei, why did you have to wake me? I was having this great dream and…" He looked at where they were, and his face instantly changed as he remembered what was going on. "Where is Sakura-chan?"

Kakashi merely pointed and said, "She's trying to knock Sasuke out. She wanted me to wake you two up, leaving her to fight Sasuke. Now that you're awake, take care of Sai while I join her."

Naruto stood up, brushing off his pants. "I don't want to babysit Creepy-san! I'm Sakura-chan's friend. I can't let her fight without help." He was about to move Kakashi aside when the latter grabbed him by the wrist.

"I'm here. And as long as it stays that way, Sakura will never be alone. Now, take care of Sai- you two need to get out of here. From what Sakura told me, the Akatsuki are using this as a chance to get to you." Not giving him time to protest, Kakashi picked up Sai and thrust him into Naruto's arms. Using his stern voice he said, "Now go! And tell the Hokage what happened."

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Sakura grimaced slightly as she was once again hit by one of Sasuke's jutsus. _I'm starting to lose more energy- I have to knock him out, and soon!_ She was startled by a sudden movement behind her, and was about to attack when she saw that it was Kakashi. "What are you doing?! Naruto-kun and Sai-san need to be taken care of, and-"

"You need me more than they do."

"No, I don't. I can't let you fight."

"You don't have a choice in that. I'll fight next to you- even if you don't need me."

"I told you, I can't afford to have you injured. And besides, Naruto-kun is more important; if they get a hold of him-"

"You are more important to me right now!"

The statement hung in the air. Kakashi and Sakura looked at each other, still stubborn in getting their own way; but now, their faces were laced with disbelief as they realized how much their words meant.

Sasuke stared at the two of them, as they stared at each other. _What… what is this?_ Looking at the two figures before him, he tried to figure out how this had happened. _They are no longer sensei and student- but what __**are**__ they?_ Realizing how foolish he was for thinking about them, he immediately used their silence to his advantage, and began a new jutsu. _"Chidori Nagashi!"_ His sword became charged with the power of the Chidori technique, and he headed straight for Kakashi. _He'll be harder to get rid of._

Kakashi was about to move Sakura out of the way and try to counter the attack when she _pushed_ him out of the way, not able to avoid the blow in time. It cut into her and struck her like a ton of bricks, her body arching in pain as the blade went through her midsection, lodging itself there.

Kakashi's eyes went wide, as did Sasuke's. His immediate desire was to take Sakura away and heal her, but that was impossible. So he did the next best thing. _"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_ Hundreds of clones appeared, fueled with Kakashi's emotions and chakra. They began to form the Chidori in their hands, and the real Kakashi pushed Sasuke into the midst of them as he carried Sakura to the outside.

"Kakashi… don't let them kill Sasuke-kun."

He tried not to clench his teeth. "Right now, I could care less about what they do to him. Actually, that's not true. I hope they give him hell." Looking down at her pitiful form, he said, "For you, though, he'll live." Trying not to show so much emotion, he asked, "What can we do to stop this?"

Sakura realized that he was referring to the sword embedded in her body. The pain was still severe, but she was using her chakra to lighten it. She grimaced slightly with the effort, and said to Kakashi, "I need you to pull this out first. No matter what I do, you have to keep on pulling. Not too quickly, though- I'm going to be restoring muscle and organ for the duration of it."

Kakashi nodded, listening to the sound of his clones disappearing as Sasuke tried to avoid their attacks. He slowly started to pull the sword out, and shook inwardly at the look on Sakura's face. Her right hand grabbed into the ground, her strength crushing the dirt underneath. Her eyes watered, and he saw that she was trying her hardest to not scream in pain. All the while, he noticed her mumbling under her breath, saying the right jutsu to heal. He almost stopped, but saw the pleading look in her eyes.

_It's over._ Sakura collapsed into Kakashi's arms, unable to do anything but look up at him. _My chakra's practically spent, I'm exhausted… and Kakashi's clones slowly disappearing. Not to mention the fact that… I'm not completely healed._ The part that was first exposed to Sasuke's attack was still bleeding and charred, although not as strongly as before. She shifted a little, as if she was about to say something, but Kakashi stopped her with the slightest touch.

"Sakura, don't. You're too tired. And, with you like this… it'll be impossible for me to focus on Sasuke enough to defeat him. We have to leave."

He gently rose, trying not to jostle her in his arms. "Kakashi…"

He realized that she wouldn't stop trying to talk, so gave in. "What is it?"

"I…"

"What? You what?"

But she was already asleep. Summoning a couple more clones, he flew across the land, leaving Sasuke and the Hidden Village of the Rain, hoping that when they arrived Sakura would be healed quickly. And that they could talk. There was something that needed to be said, and it was time to stop avoiding it.

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Naruto paced the hospital hallway, wishing that he could be in the room with Sakura. "I don't see why we can't go in… it's not fair!" And it didn't help that Sai was sitting there, just silently drawing. "What's the matter with you? Sakura-chan is in there, and all you can do is draw?"

Sai looked up from his drawing, his eyes narrowed slightly. "I'm sorry- and pacing the hallway is doing what for her, exactly?" He got a small bit of satisfaction from the red flush of anger and embarrassment that was on Naruto's face.

Naruto turned his attention towards Kakashi, who was also sitting silently, his lazy expression on his face as he tried to maintain his usual behaviour around "the boys." "And what are you doing, Kakashi-sensei? You're just sitting there all relaxed, as if Sakura-chan wasn't severely injured while trying to save _you_! You don't care about her at all, do you? I bet you-" his words were cut off as Kakashi moved from his seat, standing and looking down at Naruto with a stern expression in his eyes.

"Don't you dare say that I don't care about her!"

Naruto and Sai looked up, startled by his reaction. Naruto was flustered, but Sai looked intently at Kakashi's face. _That explains it. It explains everything._ He stood up, his drawing book left on the chair. Looking at Kakashi, he softly stated, "You love her."

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Uchiha Madara stood at the top of the mountain that held the heads of the Hokage of Konoha. Seeing a slightly bloodied Sasuke appear besides him, he smiled under his mask.

"It's the beginning of the end for Konoha. The Kyuubi will finally be back under my control. All we have to do is wait until the other members of Akatsuki arrive, and Konoha goes back into a state of calm." Turning to his 'apprentice', he said, "And you shall get your revenge on the village that destroyed your family. The time is soon."

Sasuke nodded slightly, the two of them glaring over the town that they would soon wreak havoc upon. "It is indeed."


	17. Chapter 17

Naruto looked from Sai to Kakashi. "What the hell do you mean, he loves her?!" Seeing no response from either of them, he grew increasingly tense. "Kakashi-sensei, aren't you going to deny that? And Sai-san, how could you even suggest such a thing?!"

But Kakashi just stood there, his right eye slightly raised in surprise, as he tried to digest what Sai had so bluntly stated. _I…_ Kakashi reflected on everything that had happened between him and Sakura since the day they fought each other one on one. How she was always there with a smile, always trying to have something to get him out of his depressing house. How much he needed her, to know that she was safe. _It's true. _"I-"

"Sakura-san is about to wake up, so you can see her. Just don't be too noisy, mmkay?" The nurse opened the door to find the three males in a strange triangle, each looking at the other. "Um… am I interrupting something?"

Kakashi quickly shook his head, saying, "Not at all. Now, if she's okay, I'd like to speak with her privately." Seeing the looks on the boys' faces, he added, "In order to discuss the mission. She hasn't been debriefed yet."

Naruto looked smugly at Sai. "See, silly? He's just concerned because of the mission. If Kakashi-sensei loved Sakura-chan, that'd just be weird. Right, sensei?"

But he had already closed the door.

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Sakura woke up, wondering why she smelled rubbing alcohol and clean sheets. She opened her eyes, realizing that she was in a hospital room. She was about to pick up the phone and call when she saw Kakashi standing by the window, his back to the bed. "Kakashi…"

In an instant he stood beside her. "You're up… good. You had me worried there for a second- the nurse said you were about to wake up, but five minutes have passed since then. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, it's not that-" She remembered what happened before they left the Hidden Village of Rain. "Naruto-kun and Sai-san! What happened to them? Are they here? Are they alright?"

"Yes, they're fine. I made them wait outside for a minute or two." He sat down by her feet, his eye focused on hers.

Sakura was perturbed by this. "Why would you make them wait?"

Kakashi sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Because, Sakura… there's something I have to tell you." However, he didn't say anything for a while. He just sat there, and Sakura shivered from the emotion she could see in his eye.

"Kakashi… what is it?" She couldn't stand the silence, and the look he was giving her was making her feel… different. Like she was short of breath.

"Sakura… over these past couple of months, I've spent more time with you than I have with most people. You… ever since I told you about myself, you've tried to help me. You cared, about me. After a while, I realized how much I needed you in my life. To be around you. You see, Sakura…" He leaned over gently, trying not to upset her position on the bed, and whispered, "I lo-"

The door flew open, shocking them both.

"S-Sakura-chan?!!"

The two turned and saw Naruto, mouth open. Sai stood behind him, eyebrows raised in slight surprise. Both were demanding an explanation by the look in their eyes.

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Just outside the village, the other members of Akatsuki were showing up from various other missions. Madara assumed his usual behaviour as Tobi, once again leaving Pein as the supposed leader. "Hey, everybody! We've been waiting for you, just like good little boys!"

Pein looked around at the ensemble, satisfied that they would win in a battle against the ninja of Konoha. "Since we're all here, this will be a much better fight. However… the Hokage is still on edge since the last mission. We'll have to wait a week or so, in order for things to die down. We'll have to scout out the area, noting which ninja are out on missions."

Shaking his head, Kisame said, "We don't need to worry about that. They could have all of their ninja there, and we would still beat them."

"That's beside the point. We need to make sure which ninja are out in order to ensure that no one is able to escape and warn other villages of what is going on. This victory has to be quick, unexpected, and decisive. No mess ups. Understood?"

The other members nodded, already itching to fight the unsuspecting ninja of Konoha.

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Kakashi moved backward slightly, trying to look at them with an unconcerned eye. "What's the matter with you two? I'm just trying to help her up." And he did so, setting Sakura down neatly on her feet.

Sakura couldn't think for a moment. _Was he about to say what I __**think**__ he was? _Annoyed at Naruto and Sai for interrupting, she used her irritated tone and asked, "What are you guys doing? I wasn't done telling him about the mission." She turned to Kakashi, hoping for him to back her up.

Kakashi wished he could, thinking, _maybe this is a sign that I shouldn't tell her._ He looked at her and his eye showed a hint of sadness. "Actually, Sakura, I think I have everything I need." Seeing her face fall slightly, he chastised himself for letting her down. _Well… I shouldn't tell her yet._

The nurse rushed in the room, panting slightly. "What on earth was that noise?" Seeing Naruto's slightly ashamed face, she assumed the role of a scolding parent. "I told you to be quiet around her! This is a hospital, not your little playground. You two boys, come with me. I'm going to have to suspend you from the hospital for a couple of days." Dragging them both by the ears, she was walking out the door when she turned around for a second. "Sakura-san, you can leave in a couple of hours. You know regulations, so I shouldn't have to explain anything to you. Take care now!"

With their leaving, Kakashi and Sakura stood there, unsure of what to say. Sakura decided to end the uncomfortable silence by saying, "So, Kakashi… there was something that you wanted to say to me?" Seeing the remote look in his eye, she quickly turned red. "Right. Well… let's just forget it. Hey, we still have to go on our daily outing together! You go home and relax- I'm sure you're tired. After I get released, we'll go somewhere. Okay?" Getting no response, she gently began to push him out of the room. "I'll be fine, so just-"

"Sakura."

She stopped pushing him. "What?"

Once again, he lapsed in a small moment of silence. Just as Sakura was about to poke him, he said, "Never mind." He disappeared, leaving Sakura slightly worried, both over this new behaviour and what he was going to say before they were interrupted.

She lay down on her bed, thinking, _I wish he would stop being so vague and mysterious, sometimes._ This was the last thought before she took a nap, waiting for the time that she could be released from the hospital.

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Kakashi stood outside his apartment, leaning on the railings and looking out over the village. _Why couldn't I say it?_ Now that Sai had so bluntly stated it, he couldn't deny that he cared about Sakura. It was just… there was something that held him back. After a couple of minutes, he realized what the real issue was. _I can't believe it- am I afraid to tell her?_ He, the famous Copy Ninja, who had mastered so many jutsus and was known for his feats, was afraid to tell Haruno Sakura how he _felt_.

But then, after thinking it through, he realized why he would be concerned. It was a whole new world to him- it would be completely throwing himself out there for her. He had never truly, wholly, and completely trusted someone. He then asked himself that age-old question: _What if she doesn't feel the same about-_

"Hey, Kakashi! I just got out of the hospital. Are you ready to go?"

There she was. His precious "cherry blossom". He smiled beneath his mask and said, "Yes. Where exactly are we going?"

Sakura tapped her chin with her finger, a thoughtful but cute pose. "Well, I was thinking we should go somewhere relaxing. We've had enough stress for a while, right? Hm. How about Ichiraku's? I know it's kind of tacky, but it'd be fun. I do owe you a meal, don't I?" Taking him by the hand, more out of habit than anything else, they proceeded to walk through the village, unaware of the pair of eyes watching them from above.

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Zetsu crawled over to Madara, making sure that no one else was around. Placing a large folder in Madara's hands, he added, "That's all of the ninja who are currently on missions." He handed another, smaller folder and said, "This is a list of the ninja who are going on assignment soon. The Haruno girl is one of them, along with Hatake Kakashi."

Madara nodded, saying, "They wouldn't have made too much of a difference in the fight- still, it is better knowing that they won't be around. They're mission together is in… two days. So, we'll strike the day after. But we have to make sure of one thing: we must defeat Konoha before the other villages know. Like Pein said- this must be quick and decisive."

Zetsu nodded and moved away, looking for something to eat.

Madara smiled beneath his mask, knowing that in a couple of days the Kyuubi would finally be under his control. He turned, not surprised to see that Sasuke was coming over from behind a tree. "There is one thing I was wondering about, Sasuke."

Sasuke raised his eyebrow, almost critically. "If you think I'll be affected by meeting the villagers, you have nothing to worry about. I've stopped caring about them a long time ago."

Madara turned around, satisfied with the answer. But in doing so he missed the small twitch on Sasuke's face. A second later, it was gone.

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Sakura decided to skip eating at Ichiraku's, deciding on a slightly more sophisticated restaurant that had actual booths. They sat down at one, and each picked up a menu, unsure of what to say for a moment. Thankfully, a waiter arrived, giving them time to think of something to say.

Kakashi was just about to say something when he noticed Sakura stifling a laugh. "What's so funny?"

Sakura smiled and said, "I was just thinking about the times that Naruto, Sasuke and I would try to see your face. Especially when we went to Ichiraku's, and then Ino and the others got in the way. Part of me felt like you always knew what we were up to. Even now, I think you still always have the upper hand."

Kakashi had to chuckle to himself at that. "Well, there's one thing that I can never quite figure out."

She perked up, interested. "What could leave the famous Copy ninja confused?"

With a soft voice, he said, "You."

The atmosphere of the room suddenly changed. Sakura found herself tensing up, and butterflies were fluttering around in her stomach. "Me? Why should I-"

"Because, Sakura, of who you are!" He found himself getting frustrated, and didn't like it. He took a minute to compose himself, and then continued. "You affect me more than anyone I've ever met. I find myself trying to find ways to make you happy, to make you smile." He looked her in the eye, and said the three words that, depending on how they were received, could save or destroy him.

"I love you."


	18. Chapter 18

Sakura felt her heart beat faster as Kakashi's words seemed to echo in her mind. _He…_ She noticed her hands shaking slightly, and how she couldn't look him in the eye. When she finally did, her heart almost stopped from the emotion that she saw. _He really loves me._ At first she couldn't believe it. Some part of her couldn't accept the idea of her former sensei and love. But she remembered their time spent together. How he made her feel. She slowly reached her hands across the table, placing them softly in his. A ghost of a whisper left her mouth. "I love you t-"

A loud noise generated from a table across the room, and the two looked up to find a blonde young man rushing out of the restaurant, not caring to notice the number of waiters that he knocked over on his way out. They could distinctly hear the words he said as he rushed out. "Selfish! You're both selfish!"

They both knew at once who it was. Sakura bowed her head in slight shame. "Kakashi, we can't. I mean… this is Naruto-kun. We're his closest friends. If we were to… well, if we decided to…" She found herself becoming increasingly flustered. "He'd feel alone. He needs us."

Kakashi wouldn't look her in the eyes for a while. Just as she was about to say something, he decided to speak. "Sakura… don't you understand?" He stood up, ignoring the coming waiter and taking her by the hand, lifting her up so she stood only a couple of inches away from him. "I told you before, and I'll say it again. I need you." He lifted her chin, looking her deep in the eyes. "I'll say it as often as necessary. And now that I know that you feel the same…" He pulled her possessively closer. "I'm not going to let you go."

Sakura couldn't leave his grasp, but her thoughts were split in half between concern for Naruto and her feelings towards Kakashi. She rested her head on his chest, forgetting the presence of everyone in the restaurant. When she finally remembered, her face turned a light shade of red. "Kakashi…"

He understood. "Alright, let's go then."

They both smiled at each other, realizing that they never actually did go out to eat successfully. And it was with that thought that they left the restaurant.

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Naruto ran. He didn't care where; he just couldn't be there. _I shouldn't have followed them. I would rather live in ignorance than… _Didn't they know what they were doing to him? To the team? He continued to run until he accidentally hit someone in the market. "I'm so-"

"Naruto-kun? What's wrong?" Hinata stood with an empty basket in one hand, doing some last minute shopping. Her eyes widened in surprise as Naruto sobbed quietly in her shoulder, like a small boy looking for someone to comfort him. The basket fell to the ground, unimportant. "Come on- you can tell me all about it at my place."

A half-hour later, Naruto finished his story while Hinata sipped silently on some tea. "What if this doesn't work out? What if they don't last? What if they do? Either way, nothing is going to be the same! Will I be left out? Will there be a strained relationship between them if they do break up? How can I deal with this?" He was afraid. There was no other way to put it.

_Naruto-kun…_ Hinata was surprised at the revelation of Kakashi and Sakura, but had to put that thought aside in order to properly help the one _she _loved. "You know that your friends love you, Naruto-kun. They would do anything for you. And I know that you would do anything for them as well. You guys have a special "bond", as Sai-san would put it. So, as their true friend, maybe you should… let them work this out. If only for a while." She put down her cup, scooting closer to him and taking his hands in hers. Her heart was racing slightly, she was never so bold. "Besides… N-Naruto-kun… I'm here for you."

Naruto looked up, putting his forehead on hers, and gave a small smile. Their eyes met, and Naruto gave Hinata a small embrace. "Thanks, Hinata-chan."

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Tsunade rushed around her office, files and folders lying strewn about. _I know that I placed that damn folder around here somewhere!_ She was reaching the height of frustration when Shizune entered with a stack of folders.

"Is anything wrong, Tsunade-sama?" She casually placed the folders on Tsunade's desk.

"I… what's that?" Tsunade looked quite hot and flustered, and wasn't entirely capable of forming complex sentences after her heated search.

"These are your mission folders- you wanted me to go through them last night, remember?" Shizune gave her a worried look. "Are you feeling alright, Tsunade-sama? Perhaps you should take a vacation. You've been stressed."

Tsunade nodded slightly, sighing as she collapsed into her chair. "Perhaps your right, Shizune. Thank you for bringing in my folders. You can go now." The door closing, Tsunade rested her head in her hands. Opening one of the folders, she saw that she was going to assign Kakashi and Sakura on a mission. _I'm not sure if that's such a good idea. After all, they only just returned from fighting the Akatsuki._ Crossing their names off the list, she put the folder away. _Maybe I will take a vacation- although, I never would have expected Shizune to suggest such a thing._

When the door closed, Shizune walked down the hallway until she reached a window closer to the expanse of trees outside of Konoha. After making sure no one was around, her body seemed to distort in a grotesque manner, her skin slowly turning green. Zetsu smiled, thinking, _this is all too easy. _

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Sakura shook her head slightly as she walked through the market. _Gossip travels fast._ The older women in the village were shaking their heads slightly, and Sakura could hear the ghost of their whispers.

"She's dating _him_?"

"It would appear that the youth these days have no proper sense of morality. And did you hear about the age difference between them?"

"My granddaughter works in the restaurant where they were first seen together. Can you believe it?"

"Oh, her parents would be livid if they knew. Do you remember how they left right after she got her own place? She just turned 18, and they assumed it was because…"

Sakura tried to block her mind from listening to their words. But they did affect her slightly. And if the older women were talking about it, then it must be known through the whole village by now. _I guess it's too late to care now…_ The only regret that she had was about Naruto. Although he hadn't confronted her face to face, she knew that he wasn't happy with what was going on. And then there was Kakashi… although the village recognized him as one of the greatest ninja, nothing could hide his notorious reputation for reading the Icha Icha books. To be truthful, it bothered her a little.

"Sakura, if you don't pay attention, you're going to run into something."

_Speak of the devil._ Kakashi walked up behind her, giving her a small hug and setting the old women in another twitter of conversation. "Kakashi…" She wanted to smile, but couldn't.

"What's wrong?" He released his hold on her, turning her around so that he could see her face. He looked from her to the older women, and then nodded with understanding. "Don't let them get to you, Sakura. You and I are the only ones who know the whole story. Of course there will be people who don't understand." He tried to lift her chin, but she shifted slightly so he couldn't.

"That's not the only reason- in fact, the other reason stems from that. Kakashi, the main reason why people find this so scandalous is because of your Icha Icha books. You know the connotation that they give." She became slightly frustrated to see that he was chuckling at her. "What do you think is so funny? Truth be told, I don't like that you're reading those kinds of books."

Kakashi rested a hand on her shoulder, his eye crinkling in amusement. "Sakura, I haven't read a page of Icha Icha since before the mission where we fought Pein and Kisame."

Sakura couldn't believe her ears. _This is Kakashi! He never seems complete without his signature copy of it._ "Really? But… why?"

Kakashi put his hands in his pockets, regarding her in a whimsical and thoughtful manner. "You know… I suppose it had to do with you. The only thing that stopped me from throwing them out is that they were first edition, signed by Jiraiya- making them a memory of him, albeit a slightly twisted one."

Sakura couldn't help but laugh, and when Kakashi tilted his head curiously she said, "You gave up reading Icha Icha for me- most guys would say something much more romantic." Seeing his change of face, she gave him a playful shove. "But that wouldn't mean half as much. Thanks."

The old women mistook her playful shove as something else. "Alright, Sakura-san! Tell that man what's up- you're a good little girl, why don't you go out with that youthful Lee-san? Even though his eyebrows and hair style are strange, he is an upstanding young gentleman who will take care of you!"

Kakashi turned to face them, eyebrow raised. He grinned under his mask to see that the women just realized that he was right there. He put an arm around Sakura's waist, joining them at the hip. "Are you suggesting that I'm incapable of taking care of her?" As if to prove his point, he began to slowly lift up his headband. Seeing them shrink back a little, he laughed silently. "You know what I am able of doing- but what you fail to comprehend is how Sakura is precious to me." He turned to look at her. "Let's go."

Sakura wrapped her arm around him just as his arm was around hers, and she knew that it really didn't matter what anyone else said. As long as she was next to this man, she would never want anything else.

She was his strength. His weakness. And he was her strength, and her weakness. What they had forgotten is that when you reach a high state of happiness and elation, the fall is all the greater. And things were beginning to fall in Konoha.


	19. Chapter 19 not plot related

**Author's note:**

I kind of hate myself for doing this. It's like, the ultimate letdown. Here you are, expecting a new chapter, only to find that the procrastinating author is trying to apologize. But, it's necessary for you to understand!

I am sorry that I haven't updated in a long time- but there are a number of reasons. One is that I have so many different projects that I'm working on, not only for but also for deviantart (my first account- it's the same as my username here, if you want to check it out). I'm also getting ready for my first year at college, so I've got a lot of shopping and registering to do. And there's the fact that my family is full of nutcases who don't want me so attached to computers during the summer.

At this time, I'd like to thank all of you for your support- you have no idea how much it means. I especially love all of the wonderful reviews that you give. You spur me to work harder. AnimeFTW, I'd like to give you special thanks. You were the first one to follow my story, and I felt like I should tell you how excited I get whenever I see that you left a review for me, because they're so detailed! They make me feel happy knowing that the little elements of my story don't go unnoticed.

In order to atone for my lack of updating, and this little rant, I'm going to work twice as hard- the next chapter will be one of the longest, most intense, and humorous ones yet!

(Is that really atoning? I feel like I'm just torturing you more)

~ironandwine4life


	20. Chapter 20

Sakura walked up the stone pathway, her eyes warily watching the door in front of her. It loomed over her; it's gothic design and black painting not helping to calm the tension that she felt. "Kakashi… we don't have to do this. It's okay. I won't think any less of you because of it."

Said Copy Ninja was standing behind her, an amused look in that typically distant eye. "You would think that we were about to face the Akatsuki, instead of going to see your parents." He gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder, and made his way up the steps. He was about to ring the doorbell when the smaller hand of the one that he loved stopped his own.

"You don't know my parents." Sakura sighed, and knew that she would have to explain by the curiosity evident in his gaze. "Remember when we sat above the figures of the Hokage, and how I told you I ran away from home for a while?" Seeing him nod, she continued. "It's like I told you; my parents never wanted me to become a ninja. They probably already hate you because you were my sensei. Now, think how much they would despise you because we are… well…" She still couldn't say it. Or believe it; after all, only a day had passed since that moment at the restaurant.

"Dating." He placed his hands on her shoulders, giving them a gentle squeeze. "Sakura, do you think I would let you leave your parents in deception?" He smiled under his mask. _Though she doesn't know the real reason for coming here…_ "Although, at the rate gossip is going… they might already know." Winking at her, he rang the doorbell.

A stiff man in a formal robe came to greet them. Raising a critical eyebrow at Kakashi, he turned to Sakura. "Haruno Sakura… I will inform your parents of your belated arrival." He turned and entered the house, leaving the door open for them to enter but not looking to see if they did.

Sakura couldn't help but raise an eyebrow herself. "Belated?" She looked at Kakashi, who just shrugged his shoulders. _This is __**not**__ a good sign._ She was about to say something when they both heard a large squeal from across the large entryway.

"Saaaaaaakuuuraaaaaaaaa!" A rather hefty woman came bustling down the hallway at a speed that surprised Kakashi because of her stature. When she finally made it to them, she threw her arms around Sakura, nearly drowning her with the intensity of the hug. Once she was finished (and Sakura looked quite out of breath from it), she turned and looked at Kakashi with a steely gaze. "Sakura-chan, who is this man?"

Kakashi had to raise his eyebrow at that. He wasn't exactly a prideful man, but he couldn't believe that the woman didn't recognize him when he was well known throughout the nations as the Copy Ninja who had memorized over a thousand jutsus. He looked at Sakura with that same quizzical expression, and she groaned inwardly.

"Hana-chan… this is Hatake Kakashi." She gesticulated in his direction. "Kakashi, this is Kabaraku Hana, my old nurse and caretaker." Sakura tried to hide a smile at how Hana was glaring at Kakashi.

"Is this your escort, Sakura-chan?" Hana walked around Kakashi, eyeing him up and down. "He lacks form. Also, he seemed unreasonably close to you when walking in. Is he…" She gasped. "Sakura-chan… is _this_ who you've decided upon?"

Kakashi didn't like the tone of the woman's voice when she said that, as if he wasn't worthy of Sakura. Before Sakura could answer, he put an arm around her waist and then watched Hana's reaction, wondering what to expect. And the opposite of what he expected happened. A second later, he was gasping for breath as Hana wrapped her large arms around them both.

"This is simply marvelous! Sakura-chan, for the longest time I was worried about you after the Uchiha nonsense. To know that you've finally found someone, however crude he may be…" She laughed at Kakashi's disgruntled sound. "But we _must_ work on his manners before your parents come down." Not giving him time for a response, she dragged him by the hand down the hallway. She looked over her shoulder at Sakura, who was stifling a chuckle under her hand. "We'll take at least a half hour, duckie. Keep your parents distracted, mmkay?"

Kakashi looked at Sakura with a perplexed and concerned look. When he saw her, one hand around her waist and the other slightly covering her mouth, he realized how lucky he was. Her emerald eyes glinted with merriment, her soft lips curving upwards in a smile. Right now, she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. And it was with that thought that he followed Hana to a kind of torture almost as bad as facing a team of skilled ninja.

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Ino slammed her fist onto the table. "Alright, everyone's here, so let's get this meeting started!" She looked around, glancing to double check. _Shikamaru, Lee, Neji, Hinata, Naruto, Kiba, Shino, Chouji, Ten Ten, Sai, and me._ Ino had called this meeting at Ichiraku's for a specific purpose.

Shikamaru mumbled under his breath.

"What was that, Shika-kun?" Ino snapped.

He sighed. "This is all so troublesome. Why do we need to be here?" Neji, although not a close friend of Shikamaru, nodded his head in silent affirmation. The rest of them looked at Ino expectantly, wondering what this was all about.

"I'm getting to it! Don't be so impatient and lazy." She looked at each of them, wondering which ones already knew. "I have some interesting news to tell you all. In case you didn't know…" She paused for a dramatic effect. "Forehead and the Copy Nin are dating!"

Hinata looked quickly over at Naruto to gauge his response. He merely gave her a soft smile, and laced his fingers with hers. "I'm trying to give it some time, like you suggested, Hinata-chan." They shared a smile.

The other reactions varied. Lee looked like he was about to cry, and was ready to make a ruckus. Shikamaru, Shino, and Neji tried to look indifferent, but had a secret glint of curiosity in their eyes as to how this could have happened. Ten Ten started giggling, while Kiba began to make lewd gestures. Sai had a small smirk on his face for being the first one to know about their feelings. Chouji looked slightly shocked, a piece of meat hanging from his mouth before he started eating again.

"Sakura-san and Kakashi-senpai? How could this have occurred?" Lee slumped his head on the table. "I feel as if I have lost my sense of youth." He then leapt up, a fire in his eyes. "Was Sakura-san taken advantage of? If that is the case, then I shall fight for her honor, and-"

"Give it a rest, Fuzzy Brows." The others turned in surprise to see that the weary voice was Naruto's. Each one was thinking the same thing: _how is __**he**__ handling this?_ For the longest time, Naruto had a crush on Sakura. Then they had become the closest of friends. Surely _he_ would have a stronger reaction, right? "We have to trust Sakura-chan. And besides… if there were anyone who could protect her, it would be Kakashi-sensei. Think about it. Anyway, I'm not going to bother her about it and neither should you."

He took Hinata's hand, resulting in her face flushing delicately. They walked out of the ramen place, leaving the rest of the group sitting there with mixed feelings. Ino was the first to speak. "Well, I was just pissed that she didn't tell _me_ about it; I heard it from that one girl who works at the new restaurant." She really wanted to gossip about it, but none of the guys looked like they were up to it. _Mabye Ten Ten would want to later…_

Neji stood up. "Naruto-kun is right, this isn't our business. You would think that we were still in the Academy with all of this nonsense and carrying on. We're Jounin now- we should act like it." With that, the group began to clear out, slightly ashamed by their behavior. Surely their old teachers weren't being so gossipy.

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"Alright, everyone- it looks like we're all here." Tsunade looked out among the group that she had assembled in a conference room at the hospital. _Genma, Shizune, Gai, Kurenai, Anko… all of the people he comes in contact with on a somewhat regular basis._

Anko was scowling slightly. "Tsunade-sama, why are we here? Is there something serious going on?" She flipped a kunai in her hands, outlining it with one of her fingers.

"No, no, nothing like that." The Hokage folded her arms and looked at them all with a scrutinizing look. "I'm not sure if you all know about this; however…" She looked each one in the eye. "Your friend and associate, Hatake Kakashi, is currently in a relationship with my former apprentice, Haruno Sakura."

Genma smirked. "The lucky bastard. If I was able to get a catch like that, why, I'd-" one look from Tsunade caused him to spit out his senbon. "S-sorry, Tsunade-sama." Although he refrained from making another comment, the smirk remained.

Gai stood up in a passionate state. "Why, the power and beauty of youth! We must rejoice in this wondrous of occasions." An instant later, his joy was replaced with grief. "Lee-san, do not lose your sense of youth- you will find success!" He then began to rant about how he would have to find a new way to beat his rival.

Shizune's reaction was to bow her head slightly, and Tsunade was wondering what she was thinking. "Are you alright, Shizune-kun?" When she leaned over to look at Shizune and get a sense of her condition with chakra, Shizune started and hurriedly moved from Tsunade's hand.

"Hai, Tsunade-sama, I'm fine." She softly swatted Tsunade's hand away. "I'm just… concerned for Sakura-chan." The answer was sufficient enough, because Tsunade let it drop.

Kurenai sighed. "I hope Sakura-san knows what she's getting herself into. It's not easy to fall in love with such men." There was an awkward silence, tinged with sadness because of the death of Asuma, of whom Kurenai was referring to. Even after all of these years, she still mourned his death.

Anko gave an exasperated groan. "Is this the only reason why we're here? What, do you want us to spy on them, Tsunade-sama?" She stood up, a hand on her hip. "I'll admit, this is some interesting information. But we're gossiping about it like a couple of Genin. I'm sure your old students wouldn't even act like this." She pointedly looked at Gai and Kurenai.

Everyone began to clear out of the conference room. Tsunade walked out the door and turned around to see Shizune still in her seat. "Maybe you're the one who needs a small break, Shizune-kun. How about we go for some sake later? And maybe a bit of gambling." That would usually set Shizune off on a rant; however, this time there was nothing. Tsunade frowned as she closed the door. _Something is wrong._

After a few minutes had passed, Shizune stood up from her chair. Locking the door, she quickly glanced out of the window to make sure no one was around. After making hand formations, her skin began peeling away.

Zetsu frowned as his disguise dissipated. "This is an… interesting piece of information indeed. I wonder what Leader will think of it. And with the attack only a few hours away…" It was with that thought that he disappeared to a cavern on the outskirts of the village where the other members of Akatsuki were staying. A small shadow was in the back of the cave, and Zetsu laughed at the form. "It's so easy to mislead them. It looks like they don't really care about you after all; otherwise, they would notice the difference."

Shizune curled up as much as she could, her hands tied and mouth gagged. A single tear rolled down her bruised face. _Tsunade-sama… Naruto-kun… the citizens of Konoha. I've failed you all._

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Sakura tapped her foot as she sat in a chair in the main hall, her hand on her chin. _What on earth are they doing?_ She had changed into a red kimono with white trim, and had been ready for an hour. _Surely Kakashi wouldn't be __**that**__ much of a trouble to fix up._ She had even done her hair up; it was a bun, with two loose curls on either side of her face. Just as she was about to get up and go see, a side door opened revealing a smug Hana.

"I think he'll be just fine now." She stepped aside to reveal Kakashi, and Sakura's eyes widened at what she saw. His usually unkempt hair was straightened down, sweeping slightly to the side in a refined but attractive way. Instead of his usual uniform, he was dressed in a black kimono with the design of a blossoming flower on the back: the symbol of the Haruno clan. The only recognizable feature that he had was his mask. "The boy wouldn't let me take the darn thing off. But I did manage to get rid of that headband; lord knows what your parents would've said when they saw that." She pushed him over to Sakura. "Now, remember what I told you about propriety. Make me proud." Winking, she left to continue cleaning around the house.

Kakashi looked at Sakura, his left eye still closed and a bemused expression in his right eye. "That woman is hard to argue with. She'd give any ninja a run for his money." They both shared a chuckle, and then Kakashi delicately ran a finger down her cheek. "You look…" he smiled under his mask. _Who would have imagined this?_ He remembered the first day that he met Sakura; she was an obsessive, high-strung little 12-year-old. But after the years went by… "… like the beautiful, grown woman that you are."

Sakura flushed slightly, a light shade of red gracing her cheeks. She looked him over. "Hana-chan didn't do half-bad on you, either- your hair is actually styled!" She chuckled slightly, and then reached up to touch it with her hand. "I'm surprised, to say the least."

Kakashi stepped forward a little, forcing her to look up in order to see his face. They were only a few inches from each other, and Sakura was slightly intimidated by the closeness. Softly, he asked, "Is it a good surprise?"

Sakura's blush turned a tad darker as she lowered her eyes. "I actually think you look-" They leapt apart as a door opened, revealing the man who had greeted them at the door.

"They are ready to receive you now. Dinner will follow shortly."

Kakashi and Sakura followed him through a series of hallways until they reached a large room with two mats in front under the symbol of the Haruno clan; seated on the mats were Sakura's parents. And they did not look pleased to see their daughter on the arm of Hatake Kakashi.

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Kisame was teaching Tobi all of the purposes of a fork when Zetsu crawled up near them. Tobi, seeing the look in Zetsu's eye, knew that Kisame needed to get sparse. "Kisame-san, look! That cloud looks just like Samehada, no? It's fluffy and soft… just like the sword!"

The response of the shark-like man was exactly what Tobi had hoped for. "You obnoxious, ignorant brat! I'm going to kill you with that same sword; we'll see how fluffy it is then!" Kisame ran off to go find his infamous sword.

Smirking under his mask, Madara turned to Zetsu. "I take it that you have new information? Hopefully something interesting." He casually scanned the area, pulling Zetsu to the side.

"Things have died down considerably. One factor that has helped weaken their heightened state of security is the fact that Hatake Kakashi and Haruno Sakura have… become significant others." He grinned wickedly at Madara.

Rubbing his chin, Madara thought about this new fact. "This same Sakura that I had captured previously? Well, this _is_ news. And what do you think of this turn of events, Sasuke?" For sure enough, the young man was standing nearby.

But Sasuke had been prepared for this question, and already had time to mask any emotions that he might have felt or shown. He then turned his nose up. "I do not care; they are both going to die anyway."

Madara nodded his head. "That may be. However, this will also mean that they will go at great lengths to protect each other." He turned towards Sasuke, and a smile that no one could see graced his face. "Your job will be to capture this young woman; lead her away, and then Kakashi will follow. You should be able to kill her once he's out of Konoha; seeing her die will kill him also. Then, come back and assist us in finishing the rest of them off."

Sasuke merely nodded his head.

They all turned to look out over the cave. "In only a couple of hours, I will have my revenge on the village that tried to destroy me." A soft sob escaped from the back of the cave. Madara turned to Sasuke again. "You can eliminate her now; we have no more need for Zetsu to spy on the Hokage."

Zetsu merely smiled and watched as Sasuke walked back to Shizune. She raised her eyes at him, terror evident in her face. Their eyes met, and Shizune saw a flash of red in the young Uchiha's eyes.

Then, everything went black.


	21. Chapter 21

Sakura gently pulled Kakashi down to the sitting mats across from her parents. The whole time, though, her father gave the two a scrutinizing look. Her mother was stiffly seated, and neither of them had said a word. _This is definitely __**not**__ one of Kakashi's best ideas._

But Kakashi, of course, was remaining calm and collected. "Haruno Hatsuya and Haruno Kagura, it is an honor to make your acquaintance." He hid a smile under his mask as Sakura gave him a quick look of surprise.

_Since when did he speak so formally?_ Sakura looked over at the doorway behind her parents; Hana was peeking through the frame, and winked at Sakura before closing the door. _Ah, that would explain it._

Her father was the first to speak. "Hatake Kakashi… we know your name, of course. You are quite the ninja, from the stories that we have heard." It could have been seen as a compliment, if it were not for the critical tone that Hatsuya had.

"I hope you don't believe all of the stories." He forced out a chuckle.

Sakura groaned. _Of all times to try to be humorous…_ Her parents certainly did not find his comment amusing. The opposite happened; the furrowed eyebrows of her father seemed to increase in severity. "Well, now that pleasantries have been taken care of, let's eat."

Because she had been listening to the conversation, Hana and another young woman immediately entered the room with serving trays. After placing each one in front of them, Hana bowed slightly and, after smiling at Sakura, pointed a finger at Kakashi as a reminder of how to behave himself.

Sakura frowned slightly. _How is he going to eat?_ He couldn't gulp everything down while turning his back to them; that would only make things worse. Would he… No, that wouldn't work either. As much as she knew he wouldn't like it… she wanted him to remove the mask. Partly because she wanted to see his face again. The only time she saw it was at the dimly lit festival; and her memory was sketchy at best, considering what had happened afterwards.

But she should have known that he would have a plan. As he said "Itadakimasu," she felt the genjutsu start to take hold. _He wouldn't!_ But she saw the small glint of merriment in his eye. _I've got to stop this before-_

"Kai!" The genjutsu was instantly dispelled.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at Sakura, who looked at him with surprise on her face. "Not me," she muttered. He glanced to the other side of the table, trying to hide the shocked look in his eye at the hand formation that Kagura held.

"Kakashi-san, you assume too much." Kagura lowered her hands, smiling in a fake manner toward him. Hatsuya poorly tried to hide a smile. He looked at Sakura, who stared at her parents as if they were complete strangers.

"What's going on here?" Sakura looked at her parents. Kakashi then looked from Sakura to her parents.

" There are a couple of things that we never told you, Sakura. But now, I suppose there's no longer a reason to hide it. We were once two of Konoha's strongest ninja in the Shinobi wars."

_What?!_

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Shizune woke to find she was lying on the ground, underneath a canopy of trees. Her head ached, and the last thing she remembered was being tortured from the Sharingan _I'm… alive?_ She tried to sit up, but found that she was still bound.

"I wouldn't move if I were you."

Her head whipped around to see Uchiha Sasuke, leaning against a tree and watching her with wary eyes. Shizune's face twisted into a searing glare, and she tried to control herself. "What are you doing, traitor?"

In an instant, he was standing above her. He pulled out his sword, and she turned her head, wishing that she could have been more help to her village before dying. She could hear the sound of the sword cutting through the air, and shut her eyes, hoping that the pain wouldn't last long.

"Is that any way to talk to the one who has saved your life?"

Shizune opened her eyes, and gasped. _He… cut my bonds?_ She tried to stand, and stumbled slightly, her legs still sore. Before healing herself, though, she turned to him. "Why did you do that?"

Sasuke just looked at her. "That's irrelevant. The real question is, what are you going to do now that you're free?" His eyes began to swirl slightly. "I freed you, Katsu-san. You can finally leave this place."

Her eyebrows creased in confusion. "Katsu? Was I…" Something was wrong. She couldn't remember… He was doing something to her mind! "Stop, Uchiha!" She started to set up mental barriers, trying to remember who she was. _Konoha… Tsunade-sama… Sakura-chan…_ but the images were fading too quickly. After a couple of minutes, everything about Konoha, about her friends, was forgotten. Her eyes glinted with happiness over false memories. She turned to Sasuke and bowed slightly. "Thank you, master, for freeing me." A moment later, she was gone, off to the Land of Snow to find her 'family'.

Sasuke sighed. He shouldn't have bothered to use his Sharingan on her- she wasn't important. It was too late to consider it now, though. _At least she'll be better off this way._ His eyes lowered as he considered this. "I waste my abilities to save some woman I barely know, and yet I am called to kill those that were once…" No. He shouldn't think about them. He was supposed to kill them. There was only… an hour before the attack began. Maybe less. Now was not the time to second-guess. He was an Uchiha, after all- strong and proud, never wavering.

He repeated this to himself as he walked back towards the cave, even though the images of those who were once so close to him burned in the back of his mind.

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Hatsuya pointed a finger at Kakashi. "This is exactly why we didn't want you to become a ninja, Sakura. They think that they can pull anything off on civilians, they're sneaky, they're-"

Sakura looked at her mother again. _None of this makes sense!_ "How is this possible? There are no records of any members of the family, or our ancestors, as being ninja in the Hokage's office. And I've never sensed a strong signature from either of you."

Kagura gave her daughter a small, slightly sad smile. "We made the council elders eliminate traces of the Haruno clan from the archives, because we wanted to protect you. Given all of the sacrifices our clan made, they were forced to agree. Our service is also why we were able to move here later on, and own whatever we wanted." She looked at them both. "Didn't you ever wonder why there was _no_ trace of the Haruno clan in the history of Konoha? Not even as civilians?"

But Sakura wouldn't be deterred. "What sacrifices? Why would you keep this hidden from me?" She had switched from being confused to livid. "You don't think that I have a right to know about my own family?"

"Not when your life is at stake!" Hatsuya slammed a fist on the table. Kagura placed a hand on his shoulder, and he sighed. After rubbing his temples, he nodded, as if ready to explain. "Our clan was famous for its strength, and for our intelligence and ability to memorize important information. In the Shinobi wars, we were always at the front of the battle, in order to ensure that our teammates wouldn't get in the way when we leveled the field with our punches, which was usually the first move in any battle. But because we were always at the front, many of our clan members died, until your mother and I were some of the only ones left."

Seeing that this was taxing for him to explain, Kagura continued. "Your other family members left the village, and we haven't heard from them since. You were born around the same time as the demon holder, and we knew that if you became a ninja, you would share the fate of our family."

Sakura frowned. "Our family is known for its strength? Then why is it that, growing up, I was always so weak?"

It was Kakashi's turn to speak; and his tone was cold, and critical. "You suppressed her abilities, didn't you?" Anger was an emotion that Kakashi showed only on the battlefield. But he couldn't hide the hint of rage in his eye. _All of this time…_ He remembered when she was still a Genin. How hard it was for her to keep up with Naruto and Sasuke. And how she even tried to be taught by him; all of that pain, sense of failure and rejection… it could have been prevented.

Sakura, on the other hand, was not bashful about showing her emotions. "You _suppressed_ my abilities?!" Her fists were clenched, and Kakashi could see that she was shaking slightly. "Do you have any idea of the struggle I went through, the mocking that I had from my teammates? You had _no right_-"

"We had _every_ right! You are our daughter, and we wanted to protect you!" They heard a door creak open; the other servants were wondering what the noise was. Hatsuya tried to compose himself, holding the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb.

Kagura took over in the conversation. "Sakura, we only did it because we love you, and didn't want you to make the mistakes our clan made. The life of a ninja is dangerous- we know from experience. Can't you understand?"

Hana listened through the door. _Oh, dear… this isn't working out well!_ She couldn't let this dinner be ruined- and she certainly didn't want to lose her young charge again. Hana walked in, making a lot more noise than necessary, a fake smile on her face. "Alright, who wants dessert?"

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Tsunade lifted her head from her desk upon hearing the door open. "It's about time you got here." Neji, Shikamaru, Ino, Ten Ten, Kiba, Shino, Lee, Sai, and Chouji walked in the room.

"We're ready to receive our orders, Tsunade-sama."

She gesticulated towards a number of folders. "You're the last groups I'm sending out today. You each have your specific assignments. Neji will lead Ten Ten, Kiba, Shino, and Lee. Shikamaru, your team will consist of Ino, Sai, and Chouji. The missions are B rank, so I expect you to be back by tomorrow. You are to leave at once. Understood?"

A chorus of "Hai!" rang out, and the ninja vanished as they headed out of the village.

Tsunade checked her rosters. _This is a good week for Konoha- so many missions are being carried out! The money will certainly be well used._ She rubbed her head, slightly tired from all of the filing this had caused. "Shizune!" She waited for a couple of minutes. After a few more minutes, Tsunade got up and began searching throughout the hospital. No one had seen her since the previous day.

_Where did she go?_

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Sasuke returned to the cave, finding that everyone was already there. Madara had assumed his usual role as Tobi, and was teasing Kisame again. Zetsu gave him a wicked smile, a knowing look in his eye. Pein looked up from his plans, Konan at his side.

"Sasuke-san, where are your teammates?"

He shrugged. "They aren't of any use to me- I left them at the Akatsuki headquarters. They were told to prevent any ninja from Konoha from returning to protect the village."

Pein nodded. "Very good plan." He rolled up the scroll in his hand, looking at the rest of the members. "The time to strike is soon upon us. But before we attack… we need a few more fighters." After concentrating for a moment, his other Paths began to appear. He then looked at each member expectantly.

Kisame produced a high number of water clones; Konan performed a jutsu to utilize her paper creations as soldiers, Sasuke made shadow clones, and Tobi muttered the jutsu to bring ninja back to life. All in all, it had cost them little chakra. But now they had well over fifty strong.

Pein's Deva Path smiled. "This will do nicely." He turned towards the village, and raised his hand as a signal. Each group of clones/fighters, lead by their creator, spread out through the trees until they effectively surrounded Konoha.

Madara smiled under his mask.

_It is time._

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Everyone looked at Hana, surprise showing in each person's eyes. Hatsuya quickly waved her away, saying, "That won't be necessary. As you can see, we have yet to eat our meal." Hana bowed slightly as she left, concern in her eyes at the obvious tension in the room.

Hana's interruption, though, reminded Kakashi of why they had originally come here. _At the rate things are going… this plan will never work._ He looked at Sakura, who was still upset. Gripping her hand comfortingly, he turned to her parents. "You denied your daughter her freedom, and you suppressed her abilities in order to try to deter her from her dream of becoming a ninja. However…"

Sakura looked at him curiously, her fury at her parents subsiding slightly. _What is he doing?_ His tone had become softer, and she could see his eye and how it reflected… gratitude? She found herself tensing up, but for a different, unknown reason.

"If you hadn't… I might not have had a chance to love her like I do." Looking directly at Hatsuya, he continued. "I told Sakura that we had come here to tell you about our relationship. But I have another reason for coming here. Haruno Hatsuya, I ask for your permission-"

"The village is under attack!"

Every head turned to the young maid who ran through the door. "There's smoke coming from the village- civilians are being killed and running from the village, and ninja are fighting as we speak!"

Sakura turned from the girl to Kakashi, disbelief and irritation on her face at the interruption. Her heart was pounding, and she shook her head for her thoughts. _There's no way he would ask that._ She jumped slightly as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"We'll have to come back and finish that conversation. Duty calls." He gently pulled Sakura to her feet. He started walking out the door, and saw that she hadn't moved. "Are you coming, Sakura?"

She quickly looked at her parents. "Come with us. Help fight- you are still ninja of Konoha, and you have a duty to the people!"

Her mother shook her head. "We have no such duty. And neither do you!" Her voice became soft. "Stay here, Sakura, and forget about Konoha. We can start a new life, a happier one, and-"

"How dare you!" Sakura's fists were clenched. "How dare you! To think that I would abandon my friends, my loved ones, my village, just because my own life would be in danger?" She walked over to Kakashi, not bothering to look behind her. "I'd rather have the Haruno clan remembered for their sacrifice and honor then for this cowardice and shame."

After slamming the front door behind her, Sakura stood at the edge of the lawn, still shaking. Kakashi was about to ask how she was when she pulled him close, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head in his chest. "Kakashi…" A few delicate tears trailed down her cheek.

He wrapped his own arms around her, gently putting his hand on her head. Words weren't necessary. She was pouring her heart into him, and he was willingly accepting her, having already been accepted by that same heart.

After a minute or so, she looked up at him, a small smile on her face. "You know, I had hoped to see your face again. I don't really remember what it looks like, after all that happened."

He let out a soft chuckle. "All in good time. But first…" He loosened his hold on her, and she did the same to him. They both turned to their home, where smoke was slowly rising from the Hokage's tower.

"We have a village to save."


End file.
